


TMN

by Geekygirl24



Category: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-21
Updated: 2018-09-06
Packaged: 2018-09-25 23:14:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 29
Words: 50,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9851177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Geekygirl24/pseuds/Geekygirl24
Summary: Donatello has always known that he was different from his older brothers. However, it was thanks to them that he knew that there was nothing with being different.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

Japan was beautiful in the sunset. Shades of pink and purple were spread across the sky as the sun dipped behind the mountains, casting the Yakushiji temple into shadows as their reflection in the nearby lake rippled with the breeze.

Hamato Yoshi sat in his personal meditation room, keeping a careful on his three sons. Leonardo (aged four) was playing with playmobil, which had been given to him as a gift from the Ancient One on his last trip to New York. The twins, Raphael and Michelangelo (aged two) were arguing over soft toys near their Father, with Raphael pushing his younger twin away.

Hamato Yoshi knew that his children were unique. 

Tang Shen’s family were descended from an ancient line of individuals who had been blessed with extraordinary abilities. Whilst the bloodline had been diluted due to marrying outside of the ancient line, Hamato Yoshi and Tang Shen’s children had been some of the few blessed with these unique abilities, and the physical characteristics that came with them.

Leonardo was born with light blue hair, which had grown darker as he got older, at times appearing black. His eyes were also blue, and during times of extreme emotion, the weather would change around him. Rain when he was very sad. Thunder when he was angry and bright sunlight when he was happy.

Raphael was born with bright red hair and red/brown eyes. His unusual gift was the ability to make things explode if he touched them… only if he wanted them to though. His twin, Michelangelo, was born with a light shade of red hair, which had slowly become orange over the last two years, and hazel (almost amber) eyes. The younger twin had metamorphic abilities, allowing him to alter his appearance. 

Hamato Yoshi could only wait in suspense, musing over what his youngest child would look like. He and Tang Shen had chosen not know the gender of the child, wanting it to be a surprise. A little girl would have been a delightful surprise, but Tang Shen was convinced it was another boy…. A ‘feeling’ she called it.

Speaking of Tang Shen and their future child, the room that she was giving birth in remained silent, apart from the muttering of the Doctors and the deep breathing, sometimes panting, of his wife.

“Daddy?”

Yoshi turned his attention to Leo, who had shuffled over to him.

“Is Mummy going to be okay?”

Of course, Leonardo had been too young to remember when Michelangelo and Raphael were born, so this was a new experience for him. His mother had never really spent so long away from her children until this moment.

Yoshi gently pulled his son onto his lap, ruffling Raphael and Michelangelo’s hair as the twins turned away from their argument to listen to the answer. “Your Mother will be fine…” he stated, “…. She is just busy at the moment.”

“Doing what?”

“….She’s giving you a new baby brother or sister.” 

Leo crinkled his nose at this, glancing at Raph and Mikey, “I’ve got two of those already.”

“Yes, but maybe Raphael and Michelangelo would like the chance to be big brothers?”

Nodding eagerly at this, Mikey patted Yoshi on the leg and beamed. “Me big brover! Me big brover!

Yoshi gently stroked his son’s hair and smiled at him, “See Leonardo? Michelangelo is very excited.”

Leo was clearly not impressed with his younger brother’s opinion, however, before he could argue there was a scream from the neighbouring room. Before Yoshi could investigate, the Doctor came out of the room and bowed to Hamato Yoshi. “Congratulations Sir. You have another son.”

Yoshi nodded his thanks, silently encouraging his sons to link hands and remain calm as they prepared to enter the room. 

Once given the all clear by the nurses, Yoshi led his sons into the room. Sitting upright on the bed, Tang Shen looked as radiant as ever, cradling a bundle of blankets close to her chest. 

“My moonlight…” muttered Yoshi, delight clear on his face as he went to sit by his wife, “… how are you feeling?”

Tang Shen smiled weakly, gracefully accepting a kiss on the cheek. “Exhausted… but happy.” She gestured her head at the bundle in her arms, “Would you like to hold him?”

As the other three boys clambered onto the bed, Yoshi gently took his new-born son into his arms. Pushing the blanket away from the baby’s head, he couldn’t help but smile. The baby had vibrant purple hair, big blue eyes (although the chances of them changing colour later in life were high judging by the violet ring around the edge) that were staring up at him.

“Hello…” whispered Yoshi, gently running his finger over the baby’s cheeks, “… what do we call you then?”

Tang Shen (who had been talking to her three older sons), twisted around to grin at her husband. “Shall I assume you’ll be getting your Renaissance Artist book out?”

“Of course, …. Why break a good tradition?”

Tang Shen rolled her eyes, “These poor boys.” She lifted Mickey onto her lap (wincing slightly as she did), “Would you three like to meet your baby brother?”

“Me big brover! Me big brover!” cheered Mikey, holding out his arms towards his Dad, silently asking for the baby.

Yoshi smiled at the toddler’s enthusiasm, “Just wait a second, alright? Leonardo. Raphael. Can you please sit on the bed?”

The other two were quick to obey, both resting against the headboard by their mother. Due to Mikey’s enthusiasm, the baby was gently placed into his arms first, with Tang Shen gently helping.

“What do you think honey?” she whispered.

Mikey remained silent (which was a novelty in itself), staring down at the bundle in his arms. The silence remained for a few minutes, before Mikey twisted his head to grin at his Dad. “My brover?”

“Yes Michelangelo…” answered Yoshi, gently smoothing Mikey’s hair down, “… your brover.”

Sensing that Mikey would quite happily hold his baby brother for the remainder of the day, Tang Shen negotiated with the toddler and managed to give Leo and Raph a chance to hold the baby. Whilst Raph and Mikey were quite happy with the prospect of having a baby brother (although for Raph, it was because the baby “didn’t blab”), Leo still seemed reluctant.

“Is something wrong my son?” asked Yoshi in concern, as Leo frowned at the bundle.

“…. Do you not love us?”

Yoshi and Tang Shen glanced at each other in alarm, before turning their attention back to Leo. “Honey…” whispered Tang Shen, “…. What makes you ask that?”

Leo shrugged, “Takeo at nursery said that when mummies and daddies have more children, they don’t love the other ones anymore.”

At this, Raph and Mikey turned their attention to their parents, both clearly wanting to know the truth.

Tang Shen and Yoshi glanced at each other in alarm, before Tang Shen gently removed the baby from Leo’s arms so that Yoshi was free to lift his oldest son onto his lap. “He was wrong my sons…” he whispered soothingly, smiling in a reassuring manner at all of his children “… mummies and daddies love all of their children equally, no matter what. Your friend is…. Mistaken.”

“Mistaken?”

Not wanting to say ‘wrong’, Yoshi sighed. “He wasn’t quite…. right, okay?”

Leo thought to himself for a few moments, before nodding. “Okay…. Can I hold him again?”

At this, Raph and Mikey began to kick up a fuss, both whinging about Leo getting to hold their new baby brother twice. As the volume of the complaints increased, Tang Shen rolled her eyes, “Yoshi…. I think it might be time for the twins to go to bed?”

Whilst this did distract the twins, their complaints only changed subject, not volume. 

Understanding that his wife needed some peace and quiet, Yoshi gently removed Leo from his lap and then lifted the other two off the bed with his free arms.

As his Father went to put the squabbling twins to bed, Leo turned his attention back to the baby. “What are you going to call him?”

“I’m not sure sweetie. It’ll probably be similar to you and your brothers.”

Leo nodded in understanding, smiling as the baby yawned and wriggled in the blankets. “What’s his power going to be?” he asked.

“We’ll just have to wait and see honey.”

“Is he going to be like Raphy or Mikey?”

Tang Shen smiled, “I think he’ll himself. He might not be like you three at all.”

“Good. I don’t want another Raph or Mikey.”

Choosing not to state that his younger brothers might not want any Leo, Tang Shen simply sighed. Together, they listened to Raph and Mikey protest their bedtime until eventually, the arguing died off and stopped.

Minutes later, Yoshi came back into the room, this time with a large book under his arm instead of two squirming two year olds. Tang Shen couldn’t help but smile at the sight of it. 

“I must confess, I never thought I would see that book again…”

“Hmmmm, I must admit, I do remember saying we’d stop after the twins.”

“Clearly we were meant to have one more.”

Nodding in agreement, Yoshi sat himself in the chair by the bed and opened the book. “Perhaps you would like to help me Leonardo?”

Leo nodded eagerly, shuffling to the edge of the bed so that he could look over at the book. Slowly, Yoshi turned the pages, with Leo pointing at the pretty pictures. After over ten minutes of flicking through the pages, they came upon a chapter titled Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi.

“Ooooooo!” Leo pointed at a picture of a statue on the pages.

“Donato di Niccolò di Betto Bardi?” Yoshi read over the page and smiled, “He was an early Renaissance sculptor from Florence, otherwise known as Donatello.”

“Donatello!” Leo cried out in glee, “We could call the baby Donatello! Don or Donny!”

Yoshi glanced at Tang Shen, who seemed to like the name. “How does Donatello sound my moonlight?”

“It does fit in with the rest of our names….” She grinned as Leo looked pleadingly at her, “…. Donatello, it is.”


	2. The Sweetest Gift

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Shut up!” growled Raph as he glared at his baby brother, who lay crying in the cot, the baby’s eyes clenched shut as tears streamed down his face.

“Shut up!”

Raph’s orders only caused the baby to cry harder.

Donatello had recently reached the six-month mark, but was still having trouble sleeping through the night…. And any loud noises during the day set him off into a screaming fit.

“SHUT UP!”

“Raphael!” Yoshi stepped out of his mediation room and frowned at the red-head, “What do you think you are doing?!”

Raphael gestured angrily at the baby, “He no shut up!”

“He is a baby Raphael. He gets scared at loud noises… like a toddler shouting shut up at him.”

Scowling angrily, Raph simply crossed his arms and remained silent. 

“I want you to apologize Raphael….” Ordered Yoshi, “…. Your brother is too young to understand if he’s upsetting you or not, whereas you know better. Say you’re sorry.”

“… No!”

“Raphael….”

“NO!”

“What is all this screaming for?!”” Tang Shen came striding into the room, Michelangelo hanging off one arm and Leonardo clutching tightly to the other hand. Upon seeing the stand-off between her husband and Raphael, she sighed, kneeling to the ground to speak to the other two boys.

“Leo, why don’t you take Mikey into the next room and play together, okay?”

Eager to obey, Leo practically dragged his brother to the playroom. Once sure that they were out of earshot, Tang Shen turned her attention back to her husband and son. “What’s going on here?” she sighed, turning to address her husband, “Why haven’t you tried to calm Donatello down? He’s going to make himself sick with all this screaming!”

Yoshi flushed slightly at his wife’s gentle scolding, moving to the side as she strode over to the cot and lifted Donatello out of the cot, softly cooing to him in an attempt to calm him down. 

“I’d just got him to sleep….” She sighed wearily, “…. Why were you playing in here Raphael? I’m sure I mentioned that you weren’t supposed to.”

Raphael simple frowned, remaining silent even as his Mother raised a stern eyebrow at him.

“Raphael.”

At his Mother’s warning tone, Raphael finally broke. “I weren’t being dat loud!” he yelled, “But he just cwied and cwied!”

“So, you decided to come in and shout at him.” Stated Yoshi, “Why?”

“Shouting works at Mikey!”

“Just because it works, doesn’t mean you should shout at him either!”

At this, Raphael fell back into a sulk, glaring at his baby brother as Donatello settled down in his mother’s arms. 

Yoshi sighed, “I am very disappointed in you Raphael. You are older, and know better than to shout at someone, especially your baby brother.”

Silence.

“Come along Raphael…” Gently taking his son by the hand, Yoshi led him out of Donatello’s room, “… it’s time for Donatello to have a little sleep.”

As he passed his wife, Yoshi smiled apologetically at her. 

……………………………………………………………………

Raphael’s protests over having naptime could still be heard a little under an hour later, preventing Donatello from falling asleep completely.

Rocking back and forth in the wooden rocking chair, Tang Shen listened to her husband trying to calm Raphael down (with the added contributions of Leonardo chiming in), gently sshhing the baby as he sniffled and whimpered in her arms.

“I know, I know…” she whispered, brushing the purple hair away from her son’s eyes, “… Raph’s just having a bad day. He wasn’t really angry with you… his temper just runs hot, that’s all.”

Donatello continued to whimper, violet eyes staring up at her, wet with tears unshed. Smiling sympathetically down at her youngest, Tang Shen began to hum a lullaby, hoping that the baby would only listen to that instead of Raphael’s protests.

“Quietly while you were asleep  
The moon and I were talking  
I asked that she'd always keep you protected

She promised you her light  
That you so gracefully carry  
You bring your light and shine like morning

And then the wind pulls the clouds across the moon  
Your light fills the darkest room  
And I can see the miracle  
That keeps us from falling

She promised all the sweetest gifts  
That only the heaven's could bestow  
You bring your light and shine like morning

And as you so gracefully give  
Her light as long as you live  
I'll always remember this moment”

Upon glancing down at Donatello, Tang Shen was delighted to see that he was asleep at last…. And from the sound of it, it seemed as though Raphael had calmed down as well.

“I’d forgotten how beautiful your voice was….” Came a voice from the doorway.

Tang Shen smiled, “It’s very hard to sing with four, screaming boys around sometimes.”

“Ah yes…” Yoshi winced slightly, “… I’m afraid that Raphael has been having a bad day.”

“Yes…. All the exploding plates this morning told me as much.”

“Hmmm, and I managed to prevent Leonardo from starting a mini thunderstorm in the bedroom.”

“The rivalry between him and Raphael is getting a little out of hand.”

Yoshi nodded in agreement, “They both have…. Alpha personalities. This causes them to butt heads more often than not.”

As Tang Shen went to place Donatello back in his cot, she sighed. “We can’t have these two fighting… not now. Not with- “She stopped in her tracks, causing Yoshi to frown in concern.

“Sweetheart?” Yoshi stepped closer, “What is it?”

Taking a deep breath, Tang Shen sighed. “I received a call this morning…. From Saki.”

Oroku Saki.

Hamato Yoshi and he had once been good friends, and training partners, both in love with the same woman…. Until that woman had chosen Yoshi over Saki.

His once friend became enraged, claiming that he and Tang Shen would be together… the four boys coming along only made him angrier.

Each son was another wall between him and Tang Shen.

“What did he want?” asked Yoshi, not concerned with being polite at this point.

Tang Shen merely shook her head in reply, choosing not to say anything as they left Donnie’s room and headed to the main sitting room.

“It doesn’t matter… Saki cannot be taken seriously.”


	3. He's My Son

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

Yoshi sighed wearily as Donatello finally fell asleep, a fever flush upon his cheeks. The winter had been harsh that year, with all four of their sons catching the flu that had been going around.

5-year-old Leonardo had shaken it off very quickly, as did 3-year-old Raphael. Michelangelo had taken a bit longer to get better, but he did insist on rushing out into the snow every chance he got. It wasn’t a surprise that he took a bit longer to shake off the infection.

Donatello however, was still inflicted, and had in fact grown worse over the last few days. This morning, Tang Shen had woken, only to cry out in fear, screaming that their youngest wasn’t breathing and turning blue.

Thankfully they managed to get him breathing again. But the sudden shock warranted a call to the Doctor.

Extreme Bronchitis. 

Whilst not that serious in young children, Donatello seemed to be especially susceptible to it, leading to the troubles in breathing and the fever.

Moving to his meditation room, Yoshi knelt on his mat and closed his eyes in prayer. “Please….” He begged to an unseen force, “… please help him. I’ve done everything that I can do.” He took a deep breath, ready to continue…. However, before he could, Tang Shen entered.

“Hi…” she whispered, exhaustion evident in her voice, “… I’ve put the boys to bed.”

Yoshi nodded, gently smiling at his wife. “Okay, you go and get some sleep.”

“I can’t….” she whispered, “…. What if Donny stops breathing again? I need to keep an eye on him.”

From his position, Yoshi could clearly see that Tang Shen was trying not to cry, tears building in her eyes as she took deep breaths. “He’ll be fine….” He tried to reassure her, “…. The Doctor’s given him some antibiotics which should help.”

“I know…. But I can’t help but worry.”

Nodding in understanding, Yoshi tried to give Tang Shen a reassuring smile. “Why don’t you have Donatello share the bed with you tonight, so you don’t have to worry?”

“What about you?”

“Our sofa is perfectly fine. I’ll be fine there.”

Gratefully, Tang Shen knelt down and kissed her husband on the cheek. “Thank you… hopefully it’ll only be for tonight.”

“Yes… hopefully.”

……………………………………….

As the clock in the living room struck three, Yoshi found himself still awake. Accepting the fact that he probably wouldn’t be sleeping tonight, Yoshi wearily pushed himself off the sofa. Slowly he made his way to the Master bedroom, easing his way inside.

Lying on the bed, curled protectively around her youngest, Tang Shen snuffled slightly in her sleep. Donatello was huddled close to his Mother, his hand in her gentle grasp as he wheezed in his sleep.

Leaning against the wall, Yoshi his son in silence.

He knew that the Doctor was optimistic, but they’d never had a scare like this morning. Slowly moving over to the bed, he knelt by the bed and gently took a hold of Donatello’s other hand, rubbing his thumb over the back of the baby’s hand.

Vaguely he wondered how Donatello was going to grow up. Recently, it was clear to see the personalities of his older three boys.

Leonardo was clearly shaping up to be the leader, often (unwisely) bossing his younger siblings around. Now, Michelangelo was very easy-going and went along with what Leonardo was telling to do, but Raphael was completely the opposite.

Raphael was a hot-head, often flaring into a temper-tantrum without much provocation. However, despite a lot of arguing with his siblings, he was also quite protective of them. Yoshi felt secure that Raphael’s younger siblings wouldn’t have any problems in school with him around.

Michelangelo was easily the fun-loving child, running around and making up a series of fantasy stories that he would act out either alone or with his brothers (poor Donatello usually ended up being the princess that needed rescuing, but only because he was the only one who didn’t complain).

Yoshi couldn’t but wonder if Donatello would share similar characteristics with his brothers, or would he be completely different…. And it was at that moment, that Yoshi realised that he needed to see how Donatello would grow up.

He needed to experience those terrible two’s, his first day of school and the teen years.

He needed this.

“Please…” he whispered, praying to an unknown force, “…. Please let him live.”

As the lack of sleep began to catch up with him, Yoshi lowered his head to the bed and closed his eyes, only intending to take a quick nap, before heading back to the sofa.

…………………………………………….

“Yoshi…. Yoshi wake up!”

Slowly, Yoshi raised his head and flinched slightly at the sight of his wife’s face so close to his. “Tan Shen…. what?”

Tang Shen beamed at him, gesturing down at her arms with her head. “Look! He’s breathing properly!”

This immediately caught Yoshi’s attention, and he leapt to his feet (wincing slightly as the ache in his knees), staring down at his youngest.

Tang Shen was right.

Donatello was clearly looking better; the colour having returned to his cheeks as he smiled up at his parents. This was a large change from the tired, scared baby of yesterday.

“Hello Donatello….” Yoshi whispered soothingly, brushing the purple hair away from the baby’s eyes, “… I know three little boys who are going to be very happy to see you.”

Leo, Raph and Mikey had been worried about their baby brother almost as much as their parents, and to see Donatello so ill has distressed them. 

Straightening up, Tang Shen headed towards the other bedrooms. “I have to tell them!” she stated excitedly.

Beofre he went to follow her, Yoshi glanced upwards. “Thank you….” He whispered, smiling at Leonardo’s excited squeal, “… thank you.”


	4. Donnie's Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Seven am…” Tang Shen sighed, “…. Donnie should be up by now.”

Yoshi nodded. His youngest (at 18 months) had started to follow a strict, mental schedule where he would get up at 7am…. And then not make any noise to indicate that he was awake. With their other three, almost as soon as they were awake, they were making as much noise as they could.

“I’ll go and get him.” She sighed, shuffling out of bed and striding towards Donnie’s room.

Through the thin walls, Yoshi could hear Tang Shen cooing at Donatello, calling him her ‘little angel’. Less than two minutes later, she re-entered the room.

“I think Donnie wants a little cuddle time…” she cooed, lying back down on the bed and kissing her youngest on the forehead, “…. Just a little bit of quiet time before all the noise starts?”

Yoshi nodded, “I can understand the desire.”

Almost ten minutes passed by, with Donnie curled up by his Mother, smiling toothlessly at his Father as the older man played with his hands. At 7:10am, the sounds of the other boys waking up could be heard throughout the house.

“And here we go again….” Muttered Yoshi, pushing himself out of bed.

…………………………………………………………………….

At 7:20am, a pot of rice was bubbling on the stove as Tang Shen cracked some eggs into frying pan. Fried egg on top of rice for her, Yoshi and the three oldest boys, and some mushed bananas for Donnie.

Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo were all eagerly telling their Father about what dreams they’d had the previous night. As they were seated at the table, Donnie was given some freedom in his walker, toddling around the kitchen as his mother cooked.

“Don’t back into the cupboards sweetie…” she cooed as Donnie twisted and pulled at the various toys attached to the walker, “… we don’t you to hurt your-AH!”

She yelped in shock as Donnie waddled straight into her legs. “Okay…” she groaned, wincing as she bent down, “…. Breakfasts almost ready. Time to get you seated. Yoshi can watch you.”

Less than five minutes later, everyone was tucking into their breakfast, with Tang Shen keeping a careful eye on Donnie as the baby mushed the banana against the high-chair table.

“Is that tasty Donnie?” she asked, grinning as Donnie beamed at her, shoving a handful of mushed banana into his mouth. She then turned her attention to her three other children, smiling in relief as Michelangelo shovelled rice into his mouth.

Noticing her relief, Yoshi took a sip of his herbal tea and smiled. “He seems to have gotten over his dislike of rice.”

“Thank goodness. Leo, honey, it’s your turn to help Daddy with the dishes today, okay?”

Eagerly, Leo nodded, twisting to beam at his Daddy as he continued to eat.

When the family finished their breakfast, Yoshi and Leonardo went to the kitchen to clean it up. Tang Shen took the other three children into the living room and sat with Donnie, watching as Raph and Mikey ran to their toy box and began pulling out their train set.

Sitting opposite his Mother, Donnie eagerly reached out for the toys that Tang Shen was taking out, grabbing a Happy Land figure and mouthing at it. The living room area has gates which prevented Donnie from escaping the area, although the other children could unlock the gate if needed.

“Mama! Mama!” cried out Raph as he rushed over, “Can you inflate the ball pit? Huh?”

“Maybe later sweetie, I have to take Donnie to the Doctor soon. But, maybe Daddy will, okay?”

Although he sulked, Raph nodded and stormed back over to his twin.

“Is that Doctors appointment really today?”

Tang Shen twisted around to see Yoshi standing in the doorway that led to the Dining Room, “Yes, why?”

“I think you should look outside.”

Frowning, Tang Shen went over to the window, only to wince. A thick layer of snow covered the ground, and the window was frosted over.

“Great.”

………………………………..

At around 10:30am, Tang Shen put Donnie down for his mid-morning nap. Once her youngest was asleep, she went to help Yoshi blow up the ball pit, then she went to do the laundry, as Yoshi supervised the other children in the miniature ball-pit.

Almost as soon as she finished, the baby monitor crackled and the sounds of Donnie waking up. Resisting the urge to groan, she went up the stairs and took a deep breath, before entering the room. 

“Hello sweetie…” she cooed, smiling softly when she saw Donnie standing in his cot, bracing himself against the bars, “…. Was that a nice nap?”

Still silence from Donnie.

Tang Shen sighed, “Alright… maybe the Doctor will tell me why you’re so quiet. Not that I mind your lack of crying in the mornings, but I think you should be speaking now? Or at least babbling.”

Silence.

“Okay…. Time to get you dressed for the Doctor.”

“Mummy!” called Leonardo from the bottom of the stairs, “What’s for dinner?!”

“You’ve just had breakfast!”

“…. Yeah, but Mikey says he’s hungry!”

Tang Shen rolled her eyes, turning her attention to the baby in her arms, “Your brother is a bottomless pit…. You’ll have to start guarding your food soon.”

As she strode down the stairs, Yoshi came to meet her at the foot of the stairs. “I’ll cook some Ramen for lunch, and don’t worry about the Doctor. I’ve called him and he’s agreed to come to the house.”

Tang Shen sighed in relief, leaning down to give her husband a kiss. “Thank you….” She whispered, “… I was not looking for travelling in this weather.”

………………………………………………………………………………………..

“I’m sorry honey….” Tang Shen cooed as she tried to give Donnie a hug, only to be rebuffed, “… I didn’t know the Doctor wanted to give you some shots!”

Donnie shuffled away from her, focusing on his toys as he ignored his Mother.

“Honey….”

As Tang Shen attempted to plead with her son, she heard Yoshi chuckling behind her.

“He’s really not happy with you huh?”

She sighed, “Four shots…. He screamed so much.”

“Yes, we heard…. At least we know that he can make sounds and he’s not mute or anything. What did the Doctor say about his lack of talking?”

Tang Shen sighed again, “He’s worried he might have some…. Learning difficulties. He said we should just keep an eye on him and try to encourage him. If he still shows no signs of talking despite the encouragement, then we might have to consider having a specialist.”

Seeing that his wife was concerned about this, Yoshi moved to sit next to her. “I think he’s just waiting for the perfect time to surprise you… he might just think there’s no point in talking just yet. Not with all the noise his brothers make.”

Humming in thought, Tang Shen shook her head. “I hope you’re right…” she turned her attention back to Donnie, “…. He really needs to go for a nap, but he’s not letting me do anything.”

“Let me try…” Yoshi shuffled over to his youngest, and managed to pick him up without any complaints. “… He’s really not happy with you.”

Tang Shen simply groaned as her husband headed up the stairs. “And I thought Raph’s habit of making things explode was bad.”

………………………………………………………….

At quarter past four, a little under an hour and a half after Donnie had been put down for a nap, the baby monitor crackled and the sound of movement could be heard. As Yoshi went to fetch him, Tang Shen kept her eyes on the other children. Leonardo was doodling on some scrap pieces of paper as Raph and Mickey were playing with action figures.

“Well he seems a bit chirpier now.” Chuckled Yoshi as he entered the living room, “I think he just needed a nap.”

Tang Shen glanced up and smiled as Donnie held out his arms towards her. “Oh honey…” she sighed happily, “…. You were just tired, weren’t you? You weren’t really angry at me?”

Donnie simply wrapped his arms around her neck, pulling her into a short hug, before crawling off of her lap and heading towards Leonardo. Just before he reached his oldest brother, Leo glanced up and smiled at the baby.

“Hey Donnie…” he greeted, carefully moving his ‘art’ away, “… you have a good nap?”

Donnie simply stared at him, before practically throwing himself at his brother and wrapping his arms around the boy. Stunned, Leonardo twisted his head to stare at his parents.

Donnie didn’t really initiate any physical contact between him and his brothers, so be hugged like this was rare. Before Tang Shen or Yoshi could say anything though, Donnie released his brother and crawled back to his mother.

“See…” whispered Yoshi as Donnie curled up against Tang Shen, “… I think everything will be alright.”


	5. Blossom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

BANG

Yoshi stirred in his sleep, eyes blinking open as a sound from downstairs echoed throughout the house. 

BANG

Beside him, Tang Shen began to stir. “Honey?” she mumbled, still mostly asleep, “Tell Raphie he should be in bed.”

“… I don’t think that was Raphael.”

BANG

Tang Shen shot into a seated position, frowning when she realised that the bang came downstairs. Placing a gentle hand on his wife’s shoulder, Yoshi sighed. “Go and get the children…” he asked, “… I’ll go downstairs.”

“And what if you need my help?!”

“The children need you more than I do.” He scolded, gently encouraging her to get up, “They’re defenceless. I’m not.”

“Defenceless, ha….” Muttered Tang Shen, even as she grabbed a dressing gown and crept towards the door, “… a son who can summon storms, one that explodes things and one with the ability to turn into a tiger… albeit a small one. Yeah, they’re defenceless.”

But, knowing that Yoshi was right, she headed towards her children’s rooms. Leo and Donnie both had their own rooms, whereas Raph and Mikey shared one. Upon entering Leo’s room, she smiled when she saw the six-year-old already awake.

“Mummy, what’s going on?”

Quickly hurrying over to lift her oldest into her arms, Tang Shen tried to give him a reassuring smile. “W-we’re just going to play a little game of hide-and-seek, okay?”

“But it’s bedtime!”

“Doesn’t matter….” She sighed, moving into the twin’s bedroom, “… we’re playing this game.”

Mikey was easy to wake up…. Raph, not so much.

“Go ‘way…” muttered Raph into his pillow, “… Go ‘way.”

Resisting the urge to scream, Tang Shen gently placed Leo on his own two feet and lifted Raph into her arms. “I know sweetie.” She whispered, “I know.”

As Raph stirred awake, his Mother crept into Donnie’s room.

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Meanwhile, Yoshi was heading downstairs, katana sword in his hand as he prepared to defend his home. As he slowly entered the living room, keeping to the shadows, he flinched slightly when he saw a large figure, dressed in a traditional ninjutsu uniform, with an added extra.

Gloves that had blades protruding from them.

The figure turned around, causing Yoshi to gasp slightly.

“Come on out…” chuckled Oroku Saki, “… I know you’re there Yoshi.”

As they had both been trained by the same Master, Yoshi knew that the other man wasn’t bluffing. Silently, he stepped out, remaining tense in preparation for a fight as Oroku sneered at him.

………………………………………………………………………………

“Donatello….” Scolded Tang Shen, when she saw her two-year-old huddled in his blankets, flashlight trained on the pictures in his book, “… you were meant to be asleep!”

Donnie’s eyes widened in alarm, quickly shoving the book and the flashlight under his covers in an attempt to hide what he’d been doing…. No matter how late it was.

Rolling her eyes, Tang Shen placed Raph (who was now more awake) on his feet and pulled Donnie into her arms, running her fingers through his hair as he buried his face in her neck. 

“Come on…” she gently ordered her four sons, “… time to play follow the leader.”

“I thought we were playing hide-and-seek!” piped up Leonardo, who was holding onto Mikey and Raph’s hands.

“We can play both sweetie.”

………………………………………………………

“What are you doing here Saki?” Yoshi demanded to know, “You have no right to be here!”

Saki sneered, “I have the only right! You have stolen what should be rightfully mine!”

“Tang Shen has never been, and will never be yours!”

“Yoshi?”

The two men turned their attention to the doorway to see Tang Shen standing there, the oldest three huddled around her legs with Donnie in her arms.

“Yoshi, what’s going on?”

Saki took a step forwards, which only caused Tang Shen to shuffle backwards.

“Saki….” She whispered, her grip tightening on Donnie as fog began to fill the room (indicating that Leo was getting scared), “… what are you doing?”

“I am giving you one last chance to make the right choice….”

Tang Shen scowled at this, “I made the right choice over seven years ago.”

This clearly upset Saki, who clenched his fist and tensed up. Yoshi spotted this immediately, and stepped slightly in front of his family. “Moonlight….” He addressed his wife without looking at her, “… take the children and go.”

“But Yoshi- “

“Go!”

Tang Shen shook her head, “You two were brothers!” she cried out in desperation, wanting to stop the impeding fight, “This is wrong!”

“He is not my blood…” snarled Saki, “… he was never my brother!”

“Shen please….” Yoshi whispered, “… go.”

Hearing the seriousness in her husband’s voice, Tang Shen reluctantly obeyed, silently encouraging her sons to back out of the room, keeping a careful eye on Saki as she went. Upon glancing over at Yoshi, she was relieved to see him give her a soft, reassuring smile.

“Mummy!” Mikey piped up, “Where are we going?”

“Yeah, what about Daddy?!” Raphael this time.

“Your Daddy will be fine…” Tang Shen promised, “… he’ll be fine.”

As she left the room, Saki shook his head. “How can you love and hate someone so much at the same time…” he growled, instantly moving into an attack position.

“If you truly want to fall by my hand Saki, then so be it.”

Saki bellowed in anger, leaping at his opponent and slashing through the paper-like walls. Lashing out, his blades narrowly avoided slicing Yoshi across the cheek as the other man ducked and dived to the side.

The fight lasted for several minutes, with the pair crashing through the paper walls. 

“We were raised together!” Yoshi begged as he blocked another slash of Saki’s claws, “You’re my brother, I don’t want to fight you!”

“How could I not, when you have lied and cheated to get what I most desire!”

Kicking Saki away, Yoshi shook his head. “I have told no lies Saki. Tang Shen chose me without me having to say anything. It is not my fault she did not choose you!”

Saki lunged again, however, he was quickly thrown through another wall.

“You only dishonour yourself Saki!” Yoshi growled, “You were always jealous! Always scheming! Always filled with hate!”

This seemed to enrage Saki even further, and his swipes grew fiercer and more violent, eventually knocking over candles. Due to the paper walls, the house began to smoulder and burn, quickly going up in flames.

……………………………….

Tang Shen quickly encouraged her oldest three to move in front of her, keeping a tight hold on Donatello as they headed further and further away from the house. Suddenly, as Mikey twirled around (showing his Mum how he could change his face into a pigs’ snout), his eyes widened in alarm.

“Mummy, the house is on fire! Mummy!”

“Wasn’t me!” exclaimed Raph, holding his hands up in innocence.

Tang Shen span around in shock, her grip on Donatello growing lax as she watched her home, the place where she had raised her children, go up in flames.

“Yoshi!” she gasped in alarm, taking one step back in the direction of the house, only to step back when she remembered just what she would be taking her children into.

However, Donatello made the decision for her, wriggling furiously until she placed him on the ground, and then racing towards the house.

“Donny! Donny no!”

…………………………………………..

“Please brother! Do not make me do this!” begged Yoshi as he blocked blow after blow, rolling from side to side as Saki’s claws stabbed the wooden ground, “Saki, this whole place is coming down!”

“Then we shall both perish here!”

In desperation, Yoshi kicked Saki away and backflipped to his feet, lunging at Saki once again as the fight continued.

…………………………………….

“Donatello! Donatello stop!” Tang Shen ordered as her toddler ran into the house, following him inside minutes before flaming beams of wood fell in front of the door.

Briefly, she hesitated, spinning around to see her oldest hold the twins back from going any further. “Stay there!” she screamed, desperate to be heard over the crackling of the fire and the splintering of the wood before following her youngest and the sounds of fighting.

……………………………………………………………………………

As Yoshi blocked blow after blow with his katana, grunting with the force of Saki’s attacks, he found himself forced further and further back. With another swipe of the claw, Saki knocked Yoshi’s katana out of his hand and pulled Yoshi’s head down to meet his knee, causing Yoshi to collapse against the wall, stunned from the blow.

When Saki reared back for the final blow, he felt a small pressure strike the back of his legs. Spinning around, he glared at a purple-haired toddler.

Yoshi’s youngest spawn.

Ignoring how Yoshi attempted to push himself off the grounds, silently begging for Saki to leave Donatello (what kind of a name is that?!) alone, Saki glared at the child and raised his claw into the air, taking a silent delight in how the brat took a step back in fear.

As he brought the claw down, Tang Shen suddenly appeared in front of him, shielding her son.

“STOP!”

But it was too late.

Almost in slow motion, Saki watched as his claws sliced through Tang Shen’s thin top, tearing into flesh and staining the silk with blood. With blood dripping from the claws, Saki took a step back as Tang Shen collapsed to the ground.

“NO!” screamed Yoshi, dragging himself along the ground until he reached his wife, pulling her into his arms even as Saki couldn’t move.

Donatello’s eyes were wide, staring at the body of his mother, some blood splattered on his face. The house continued to fall apart around them, and as Saki stepped forwards to try and grab the brat, a burning beam of wood fell and brushed against his hair, setting it aflame.

Bellowing out in pain, Saki ran for the closest exit, which was a hole in the paper wall, frantically batting at his hair in an attempt to put out the fire.

As Saki’s cries of pain echoed throughout the area, Yoshi clutched his wife to him tighter, burying his face in her neck as he sobbed.

“Daddy!”

He glanced up at the feeling of tiny hands grabbing at his top sleeves, frowning when he saw Donatello tugging at him, tears streaming down the toddler’s blood-stained face.

“Daddy!”

At the toddler’s frightened cry, Yoshi snapped out of it, lifting his lifeless wife with one hand and grabbing Donatello’s hand with the other, he raced towards the first exit that he could see. As he smashed through the wall, he heard his other sons cry out in alarm.

“Daddy! Mummy! Donny!”

Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo raced over, all stopping short when they saw their mother lying limp on the ground. As Leonardo tried to get closer, Yoshi held up his hand to stop him, causing Leonardo to frown in concern.

“Daddy? What’s happened to Mummy?”

Yoshi couldn’t find it in him to say anything without sobbing, so he shook his head and got his feet, Tang Shen lying in his arms as he shuffled further away from the burning house. Whilst his three oldest hung back, clearly sensing the tension, Donatello clearly couldn’t understand.

“Mummy….” He whimpered, keeping up with his Father as he tried to grab Tang Shen’s hair, “… Mummy!”

Despite attempts from Leonardo, Donatello continued and continued until Yoshi just snapped.

“Get with your brothers and stay there!” he snapped, startling his youngest into stopping in his tracks and shuffling backwards in order to avoid his Father’s anger.

Ignoring how tears built up in Donatello’s eyes, Yoshi turned his attention back to his deceased wife, ignoring how her blood stained his hands, sleeves and chest.

As Donatello went to huddle with his brothers, Yoshi finally came to the edge of their property and the large area of grass underneath the blossom trees. Laying Tang Shen gently on the ground, Yoshi slowly twisted around to see his four children standing behind him, tears in their eyes.

His heart twisted in guilt when Donatello wouldn’t even look at him.

“My sons…” he whispered, holding out his arms for his children, “… I am so sorry.”

The four buried their faces into Yoshi’s chest, tears staining the fabric as they sobbed.

“I’m so sorry.”

…………………………………………

As the blossom fell around the wooden cross, Yoshi felt a sense of peace. Yes, he still felt grief over losing his beloved Tang Shen, but knowing that they had been able to bury her in peace, might enable him to sleep that night.

Whether his sons would sleep was another matter entirely.

All four had been having difficulties getting the sleep and staying there, with many of them crawling into bed with their Father. Due to their house being burnt to the ground, the small family had been sleeping in a hotel room until a more permanent solution could be found.

“What are we going to do now Daddy?” asked Leonardo, as he stared at his Mother’s grave.

“… I don’t know. I just don’t know.”


	6. The Move

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Daddy, are we there yet?”

Startled from his meditation, Yoshi turned his attention to Leonardo and shook his head, sighing as the 6-year-old relayed this information to the twins… who groaned in disbelief.

It had been six months since their Mother had been killed, and whilst the pain was still there, his oldest three were slowly moving past it…. Donatello however, was a different matter.

The two-year-old barely spoke anyways, but ever since his Mother had dived in front of Saki’s claws to save him, the toddler seemed to be trying to remain as invisible as possible. More often than not, he would find a spot far away from the rest of his family, huddle there and stare at the wall.

Yoshi was worried.

Donatello’s brothers were worried as well. 

Leonardo would try to talk to Donatello…. Only to be greeted with silence. Raphael would yell and Michelangelo would try and drag Donatello over to the main group in order to play.

Nothing worked.

Yoshi had hoped to take Donatello to see a professional back in Japan, but due to receiving threats and shadowed figures breaking into their hotel room, he had made the decision to leave the country. 

And now here they were, hiding in a plane and heading towards New York. Suspecting that Saki was still alive and looking for him, Yoshi opted not to buy a ticket, knowing that it could be traced. Sneaking onto a plane and leaving the country undetected was his best option.

“Why are we going to America Daddy?” asked Leonardo, “Why can’t we stay home?”

Yoshi sighed, “It’s too dangerous remember? We need to go to America to be safe.”

“But what about all our friends?”

“You can make new ones Leonardo. I already have plans to set up a dojo in New York under a different name and you and your brothers can go to school…. Or possibly home-schooling.”

“But- “

“- Enough.” Yoshi sighed, “This needs to be done Leonardo, with or without you agreeing.”

At this, Leonardo knew that if he were to protest further, his Father may lose his legendary patience. Simply nodding, he moved to sit with Mikey and Raph again. As his three oldest children immersed themselves in drawing and playing their imaginary games, Yoshi decided to try and talk to Donatello again.

Shuffling over to his youngest’s chosen corner, Yoshi slowly moved into Donatello’s eye-line, not wanting to startle the toddler. “Hello Donatello…” he greeted, seating himself in front of Donny, “… are you alright? You’re being very quiet over here.”

Donatello just shrugged, turning his eyes away from his Father to focus on another wall.

“Don’t you want to go and play with your brothers? I think they’ll be very happy to involve a scientist or a magician in the story?”

A shake of the head.

Yoshi sighed, “Don’t you remember what the Doctor said? You need to start using your words.”

Shrug.

Donatello hadn’t liked the Doctor. He’d liked the interesting books and the pictures inside, but not the man himself. The patronizing tone and the false smile, unnerved Donatello, and that made him clam up.

Which, of course, made the therapist slowly lose his patience when he realized that this wasn’t going to be a simple case of ‘child befriends Doctor and starts talking’.

Scowling at the memory, Donatello hunched in on himself further. 

“I know you didn’t like the Doctor, but you know he’s right. You can’t stay quiet forever.”

Donatello just nodded, as though saying ‘yes I can.’

“Well… I know several people who would like to hear you speak. Me. Your brothers… Mommy always liked hearing you when you did speak.”

In hindsight, this might have been the wrong this to say. 

The wound of their Mother’s death still raw, Donatello’s eyes began to fill up with tears before they spilled down his cheeks, burying his face in his arms and knees as he muttered something.

“Donatello? Donatello?”

Slowly, Donatello raised his head and scowled at his Father. “Mommy’s gone…” he whispered, “… Mommy’s gone.”

Flinching back as though he’d just been shot, Yoshi resisted the urge to visibly wince. “I know… I know Donatello, but that doesn’t mean that you should stop talking.”

Silence.

“Donatello, please!”

As his youngest turned away from him, Yoshi threw his hands up into the air. “Alright…” he sighed, “… alright. If you want to stay here on your own until we get to New York, then so be it.”

Ignoring how the rest of his sons watched in alarm, Yoshi got up and stormed away, choosing the opposite corner to sit in and meditate.

………………………………………………………………………

Getting out of the plane without getting spotted was easy for someone as skilled as Yoshi (despite having to constantly remind his sons to be quiet and remain in the shadows). Getting onto the streets of New York was slightly harder, but not impossible.

“Alright…” he whispered, as the small family headed into an alleyway, “… We just need to head towards Central Park. I’ve rented a dojo and the adjourning flat for us.”

“Are we going to get our own rooms Daddy?” asked Raph, clutching tightly to his bag, “Because I don’t wanna share with Mikey anymore.”

“Hey!”

Soothed by the familiar bickering of the twins, Yoshi couldn’t help but chuckle, despite the graveness of the situation. All of them had but one bag each, filled with personal possessions, clothes and the essentials.

“Yes, I’m sure the apartment has more than enough rooms for all of you, and possibly some spare. However, we’re not going to know if we don’t get their alright?”

“Hai Father…” his three oldest answered. 

Donatello, who was pressed up against his Father’s legs, remained silent as usual.

“Alright…” Yoshi sighed, “… everyone be sure to keep a hold of one another and let’s go. Hopefully, it won’t be too long a walk.”

…………………………………………………….

Famous last words.

Yoshi groaned when he heard Raphael start up another round of protests. With Donatello asleep in one arm, and Mikey clinging onto the other, he was quickly losing his patience.

Taking deep, soothing breaths, Yoshi pushed his frustrations to the back of his mind. They were all stressed with the move and the shadowed figure possibly following them… getting annoyed wouldn’t help.

Tang Shen would know what to do.

“Daddy, I’m tired!”

Sigh. “I know Michelangelo, but I’m sure we’ll be there soon.”

“But I’m tired now! Why can’t we go back home?”

“Home is- home isn’t safe anymore.”

Behind him, Yoshi heard Leonardo quietly speaking to Raphael about ‘the shadowed man who killed Mommy.’

The fact that his sons were so aware of how their Mother died, concerned Yoshi… the fact that Donatello, his most sensitive son, was the one to witness it, concerned him more.

Before he could dwell any further on the past, Mikey’s tone changed and he began to tug eagerly on his Father’s hand. “Park Daddy! There’s a park!”

Glancing over to where his son was pointing, Yoshi couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. 

Central Park.

The dojo couldn’t be far.

“Hamato Yoshi?”

An elderly voice suddenly came from behind him, prompting him to spin around in surprise as his children yelped and huddled closer. Standing behind them was an elderly, Japanese man with a long grey beard, dressed in traditional clothing.

“Hamato Yoshi?” The man asked again, stepping closer, “I assume that’s you?”

Yoshi nodded shakily, “Y-yes, that’s me. Are you Mako? The one who’s renting out the dojo and the apartment?”

“Hai. And these must be the children?”

Quicker than Yoshi ever expected, the old man was in front of them, kneeling and holding out his hand for Leo or Raph to shake.

“Kon'nichiwa young ones….” He greeted, smiling as Leo shook his hand as Raph scowled at him, “… My name is Mako. But you can call me… Splinter.


	7. Upheaval

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Stay still Donnie!” 5-year-old Mikey laughed as his 3-year-old brother squirmed in place, pulling at the overly large jumper Mikey had forced him into. “You gotta stay still for me to save you! Like Spiderman.”

Ever since moving to America, Mikey had started to collect the American comic books, rather than the manga ones that were available in Japan. Spiderman was his favourite… at the moment.

“Now remember… I’m gonna jump off the sofa and then roll towards you, grab you and then I’ll have saved you from the Green Goblin.”

“Michelangelo…”

Guiltily, Mikey twisted around to see his Father standing in the doorway.

“… please tell me you weren’t thinking of jumping off the sofa?”

“… No.”

Yoshi simply raised his eyebrow, waiting for the truth… it didn’t take long.

“… Yes.”

“I thought so… is that one of Raphael’s jumpers?”

Striding over to his youngest, Yoshi lifted him into his arms, smiling softly at the sight of the toddler burying his face into the neckline of the jumper.

“Hello there…” he muttered softly, smiling as his youngest smiled back.

The six months that they had been living in New York had been wonderful. Mako, or Splinter as he preferred to be called (an affectionate nickname given by his deceased wife), had been great with the children, often happy to watch them when Yoshi went to teach.

It was still summer, so Yoshi was concerned that having to look after four children would be challenging for the elderly man…. And yet Splinter was fantastic with them.

Leonardo thrived under the positive attention, and when Mako started to teach him some basic ninjutsu, the seven-year-old was thrilled. The emotional control that came with the training also helped to decrease the number of storms that occurred indoors.

Mako had also started to teach the twins some basic moves, easily coping with Raphael’s temper tantrums and Michelangelo’s… enthusiasm.

Whilst Donatello was still too young to learn, Mako only brought out the best in Yoshi’s youngest. He had never heard Donatello speak so much in his entire life over the course of the last six months. It wasn’t every day, but it was often enough for Donnie’s family to take notice.

“… are you playing nicely with your brother?” Yoshi continued, pulling the neck of the jumper down so that he could see Donatello’s face.

“Aha…” Donatello nodded, “… ‘m Mary Jane.”

“That’s nice…” Personally, Yoshi didn’t really understand, but he listened to Mikey and his babbles, and the name made sense, “… Splinter has found a new book for you.”

Donatello clapped in excitement.

In lieu of ninjutsu classes, Donatello had been learning how to read and write… and less than a week into his lessons, it was obvious that there was something special about him. Mako found himself having to grab more advanced books for the three-year-old… and consider hiring a private tutor in order to keep up.

Tang Shen always had her suspicions about their son, but was murdered before these suspicions could be confirmed…. She would be so proud.

As Yoshi carried Donatello towards the main dojo training area, he could hear a commotion coming from outside. Before he could even think about investigating, Mako burst into the main living area and rushed over to a desk that was in the corner of the room, moving it to one side and revealing a hidden trapdoor.

Marvelling slightly at the strength of the old man, Yoshi frowned as his two oldest ran in. “Mako-san. What is going on?”

“Purple Dragons…” muttered Mako as he opened the trapdoor, “… they’re a gang from the streets. They’ve been very interested in this dojo lately.”

“Only recently?”

Mako nodded, “For around three months now…” silently, he gestured for the three oldest children to go through the trapdoor, “… when I went to go shopping today, one of them questioned me about you and your family.”

Tensing at this, Yoshi clutched Donatello closer. “Asking… about us?”

“Hai. You must hide… I suspect there is someone else behind this sudden interest.”

“You want us to go in there?”

“Hai. This trapdoor leads to a separate apartment…. It’s hidden deep in the sewers, so they won’t be able to find you.”

“… We can’t leave you here to deal with this.”

Mako shook his head and sighed, “Yes, you can. These men are looking for Yoshi and his four sons, so Yoshi has to disappear… forever or until this evil has been defeated.”

Before Yoshi could reply, Mako pushed him towards the trapdoor, “Hide! Now!”

Reluctantly Yoshi, still carrying Donatello, clambered down the ladder until he reached a room at the bottom. With Leo, Raph and Mikey huddled in the room (and kept entertained by some toys that Mako had obviously left there), Yoshi placed Donatello next to his brothers and headed back up the ladder, just as a scraping sound could be heard along the wooden floorboards above.

He could only raise the trapdoor up a little, it being blocked by the desk above. He could just about see Mako’s feet…. More if he went down a rung.

Mako began to work through a series of katas, barely pausing for breath as they increased in difficulty

Suddenly, the door flung open and a huge, blonde-haired man, with a dragon tattoo on one arm, strode in... with several ninjas following on behind. With a grunt, the large man ordered the ninjas to attack Mako… who dealt with them easily and with honour.

Unfortunately, the ninjas didn’t follow the same code. The large man then used a strange device, that shot cords out of it keeping Mako’s wrist immobile. Three ninjas did the same, immobilising the rest of Mako’s limbs.

With the push of a button, electric currents ran through the cords, sending Mako into painful convulsions as the older man screamed.

Just below, at the bottom of the ladder, Yoshi heard his children whimpering at the sound. Before he could reassure them that everything would be alright, the large man snarled in frustration.

“What’s wrong with them? Why aren’t they working?”

The cords were no longer charged with electricity, but it wasn’t enough for Mako. With the severe electric shock he had just received, the old man collapsed to the ground.

“Daddy…” he heard Mikey whisper, “… D-Donny.”

Startled by his son’s voice, Yoshi twisted around to glance at the ground and his son. Leo, Raph and Mikey were staring at their youngest brother…. who seemed to have electricity crackling all around him.

“Donatello…” Yoshi whispered in amazement.

His three other sons had developed their own powers relatively early on, but despite his unique eye and hair colour, Donnie showed no signs of developing any… until now.

However, before he could say anything, there was the sound of wood splintering under force… and metallic footsteps echoing throughout the room.

“Where is Hamato Yoshi?” The new figure questioned… his voice sounding extremely similar. When Yoshi turned his attention back to the confrontation, he felt as though his heart had dropped into his stomach.

The blades that stuck out from the knucklers of the armour confirmed Yoshi’s suspicions.

Oroku Saki.

“I will not ask again old man. Where is Hamato Yoshi?!”

Mako remained silent, glaring weakly up at the monstrous figure above him. 

“Shock him.” Saki ordered the large man.

“They’re not working boss!”

Saki growled in anger, spinning around and slashing his companion across the face. It was so skilfully done, that only the very tip of the claws caught the man’s cheek, slicing two thin lines into his cheeks.

As the large man yelped in pain, Mako sneered. 

“He who lives without honour, shall end without honour.”

This enraged Saki. “This is getting us nowhere… You should be honoured old man. I will finish you myself!”

Shell-shocked, Yoshi watched as Saki raised his clawed fist into the air…. And then brought it down, slashing Mako’s throat.

Blood spurted everywhere… just as it had with Tang Shen.

Feeling his eyes fill with tears, Yoshi slowly lowered the trapdoor and closed his eyes in grief, slowly making his way down the ladder. 

“Daddy?” questioned Leo as the footsteps from above the hideout began striding around the room, “Daddy, what’s going on?”

Yoshi sighed wearily as he reached the ground, “We need to head further into the sewers…” he answered, “… where does that door lead?”

He gestured towards a door at the end of the room, sighing as his children sighed.

“Well, there’s no time like the present to find out.”

Reacting on instinct, he bent down to pick Donatello up…. Only to stop in his tracks.

Donatello was still visibly crackling with electricity, his eyes wide in alarm as he stared at his hands. “Daddy…” he whispered, “… Daddy, make it stop.”

Slowly, Yoshi knelt in front of his son. “Just take deep breath….” He softly encouraged, “… Just imagine all that electricity going back into your body. Everything is calm… everything is fine.”

It took a few minutes (during which time, Yoshi encouraged his children to go through the door within the room), but eventually, the electricity from all around Donatello seemed to merge into his skin and everyone sighed in relief.

But there was no time to discuss it.

Striding through the sewers of New York, Yoshi felt as though he was going to pass out from the stench, blindly moving forward in an attempt to put distance between his family and Saki…. He couldn’t watch anyone else fall to that Monster’s blades.

After around 10 minutes of walking, they came across a large box, just sitting on the stone pathway… clearly, it didn’t belong there. Cautiously, gesturing for his sons to remain behind him, Yoshi made his way over to the box.

Scanning it, he couldn’t see any obvious traps and when he reached out to touch it, no alarms blared. Partially satisfied that nothing was dangerous about the situation, he opened the box…. Only for there to be one sheet of paper lying at the bottom.

It read as follows:

Yoshi,

If you are reading this, then the Purple Dragons and their new sponsor have finally caught up with us… and I didn’t make it.

Do not despair Yoshi. I have made peace with my death, and if I died protecting you and the children, then I died with honour.

However, you cannot return to the house. Rumours on the streets are that the sponsor is looking for a Hamato Yoshi…. So Hamato Yoshi needs to disappear. 

Even when you have to surface, I beg of you. Do not use your real name. It’s no longer safe for you and your family.

On the back of this paper, I have written coordinates for a new, secure home.

Please be safe.

Splinter.

Taking a deep breath in order to calm himself, Yoshi closed his eyes.

“Daddy?”

He turned around to see Donatello standing behind him, his brothers close behind.

“Daddy, what are we gonna do now?”

“Survive…. We’ll survive.”


	8. Dead End

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

Yoshi sighed wearily as he managed to sneak his four sons and himself into the alleyway without anybody really noticing. 

Shopping was a difficult task, especially with Saki (who was calling himself Shredder now) looking for them. Going by the name ‘Splinter’, as silent respect for the man who’d saved them all those weeks ago, it was easier to remain anonymous. Especially if he covered his son’s unique looks with hats/hoods and sunglasses.

But how many Japanese men with four sons were there?

They couldn’t keep doing this forever.

Encouraging his sons to climb down the ladder into the sewers, Splinter quickly scanned their surroundings, making sure that no-one was watching, before climbing in himself.

Using this particular sewer entrance, they weren’t far from their new home, which had been set up by Mako. It was a large area, probably an abandoned bomb shelter for large crowds, and for their family, it was perfect.

Every child had their own room, with a living room, kitchen, dojo and classroom…. And yet it still wasn’t perfect.

“I wanna go to the park!” whined Mikey, “I saw someone dressed as Batman! I wanna play Batman and Robin!”

“You can play Batman and Robin here Michelangelo.”

“No, I can’t! Leo and Raphie always wanna be Batman, when I wanna be Batman! And all Donnie wants to do is read those boring books!”

Ever since Mako and Yoshi had discovered just how intelligent Donatello was, Yoshi had made it his mission to find as many books for the toddler as possible. The ones that he’d found, were more suited towards children of Leonardo’s age, but Donatello breezed straight through them.

Unfortunately, by Yoshi actively encouraging his youngest son’s intelligence, it meant that Donatello played with his brothers less and less.

Michelangelo didn’t like that.

“Well…” began Yoshi, “… if you ask very nicely, maybe Donatello will play with you. But we’re not going to the surface again today… I am sorry Michelangelo.”

Tears built up in the five-year-old’s eyes, but Michelangelo simply nodded sadly and moved away, heading towards his room.

Hopefully, that would be the end of it.

………………………………………………………………………..

Mikey hunched in on himself as he curled up into a ball on his bed…. It wasn’t fair. All he wanted to do, was play with other children, have fun like they used to do in Japan and when they lived with Splinter.

It didn’t matter that Daddy was now saying that they should call him Splinter when up on the surface, he wasn’t the Splinter that they knew.

“Mikey… psst! Mikey!”

Raising his head from his knees, Mikey frowned when he saw his twin standing in the doorway. Raph grinned at him, “Ya wanna play Batman?”

“Yeah… but only if I can be Batman!”

“Yeah, yeah… let’s go get the others.”

Scrambling off his bed, Mikey frowned in confusion. “Why are we getting the others?”

“Just come on!”

It took around 10 minutes for Raphael to convince Leonardo to follow them (pulling their older brother away from his practice), before the trio turned their attentions to Donatello. The toddler was seating in one of the empty rooms, huddled in the corner as his eyes scanned over the large print in the book.

“Come on Donny…” Raph exclaimed, gently patting the toddler on the arm, “… come on, let’s go and play.”

Donny tilted his head to the side in confusion, allowing himself to be lifted to his feet as the four brothers headed to the exit. “Play? Play where?”

“Outside.”

Leonardo immediately protested at this (although quietly so that their Father didn’t hear), hissing in Raphael’s ear as they crept out of the home, heading into the sewer and towards the manhole.

“This isn’t a good idea Raphael!” hisses Leonardo, “If Daddy catches us- “

“- He won’t”

“We’re gonna get into trouble!”

Raph smirked at this, high-fiving his younger twin as Mikey ran past and clambered up towards the entrance to the surface world.

The two five-year-olds led the way, with Mikey shifting into a small gorilla, giving him an increase in strength. This allowed him to lift up the manhole, and sneak out of the sewers, closely followed by his brothers.

“This isn’t a good idea!” Leo exclaimed, shaking his head as Donnie pressed himself up against his oldest brother, “We need to go back!”

“No way!” Raph yelled, “I’m fed up of being stuck down there!”

“But it’s to keep us safe!”

“I don’t care!”

As Leonardo grew more and more frustrated, tiny storm clouds formed above his head. This only made Raphael laugh… which made Leo angrier. Leo opened his mouth to yell, only to be stopped when there was a soft tugging on his shirt sleeve.

Glancing down, the storm clouds disappeared when he saw Donatello staring up at, a concerned look on the toddler’s face. Whilst they often believed that Donnie didn’t understand human emotions in the same way that they did, it was moments like this that made them think otherwise.

Taking a deep breath, Leo managed to calm down. “It might be dangerous Raph…” he stated, tension still in his voice.

“Good!” exclaimed Raph, “I laugh in the face of danger! Hahahahaha!”

“How cute.”

Raph yelped at the unfamiliar voice, darting over to his brothers as Leo stepped slightly forwards, making sure that he was in front of his siblings.

“Well, well, well…” chuckled a young lady, bright red hair (obviously dyed) as she stepped out of the shadows, “… I wonder what we’ve got here Bobby?”

“I don’t know Saph… what do you think Eddy?”

The much larger man, referred to as Eddy, simply chuckled…. He was the scariest by far.

“You’re right Eddy…” Bobby answered, as though Eddy had actually answered, “…. Looks like the trespassers are gettin’ smaller and smaller!”

Leo shook his head frantically, “W-we didn’t mean to! W-we’ll just get going and- “

“- wait a minute.” Saph strode closer, a smirk on her face, “Funny hair colours that little’un has…. Very natural. Very unique.”

Leo tensed at this. Whilst his dark blue hair could pass for black in certain lights, and Raph and Mikey’s hair colour looked natural (red and ginger), Donnie’s hair was a vibrant purple…. That couldn’t be hidden. “W-we’re just children!” he pleaded, “You can’t- “

“- Oh, we can. Do you know what we do to children who trespass on Purple Dragon territory?”

Raph scoffed at this, “You can’t do anything to us.”

“Raph, shut up!”

“You shut up! Father always sad that- UMMMPH!”

Slapping a hand over Raph’s face, Leo frowned at his younger brother. “Shut. Up.”

As the three Purple dragons surrounded them, Bobby leant down and smirked at Leo. “Go on brat…. Let him speak. I’m sure he’s got something interesting to say.”

“No! No he hasn’t!” Glaring at Raph when he tried to speak again, Leo gently signed for his two other brothers to try and back out of the alleyway, “W-we really should be going now and- “

“Woah, woah, woah kid….” Exclaimed Saph, blocking their way out, “… what’s your hurry brat? Don’t you wanna have fun with us?”

“Yeah!” agreed Bobby, “It’s only a…. small event! Hahaha!”

“I got one. I got one! We’re not…. Kidding around! Hahaha!”

Whilst the three thugs were busy laughing, Leo took advantage of this and encouraged his brothers to run towards the streets, lifting Donatello into his back when the toddler struggled to keep up.

“Keep running!” he yelled at Raph and Mikey, “Get to the next alleyway!”

The usually stubborn Raph nodded, grabbing his twin’s hand and practically dragging him in the right direction. They could hear the thugs yell when they realised that the children were gone, prompting them to increase their speed… until they reached a dead end.

“Now what!” hissed Raph as the four hid behind a dumpster, “We can’t get out.”

Leo glanced around frantically, wincing when he heard the three thugs enter the alleyway, calling out for the children. As they got closer, and the younger siblings pressed themselves against the older two, Leo came to a realisation.

“We can fight like… like Daddy!” he whispered, “Like ninjas!”

Raph just frowned, watching as his older brother squeezed his eyes shut, clearly focusing as fog started to fill the alleyway.

As the thugs started to yell in shock and confusion, Leo turned to Raph and grinned at him. “You think you make some of these bottles explode?”

Glancing around at the many bottles, Raph nodded, a devious smirk on his face. Grabbing a few of the bottles, Raph’s eyes glowed red before he peeked his head around the dumpster and threw them blindly in the direction of the thugs.

As the glowing bottles started to explode and the thugs screamed and yelped in shock, the children began to laugh and whoop in glee.

Until they heard one of the thugs collide with the dumpster.

Using the dumpster as a guide, Bobby made his way to the back of it and smirked at the four children huddled there.

“Gotcha ya little brats!”

Making sure that he was in front of his younger brothers, Leo straightened up, trying to appear braver than how he felt. “Y-you leave us alone!” he yelled, his high voice causing the thugs to laugh.

“Aw, I think he’s trying to be brave.” Saph cooed, nudging Bobby in the side “How cute…. But it’s not going to help brat.”

The four remained silent as the female grinned, “Four little boys with unique hair and powers, clearly not America…. We know someone who would pay a pretty price for you lot.”

Shredder.

Donatello immediately began to whimper at this, burying his face into Mikey’s chest as his brothers all huddled closer together. At his brother’s whimper, Leo took up one of the defensive positions his Dad had been teaching them.

“Y-you’re not going to touch them!” he yelled, “You’re not!”

“And you think you can stop us?”

“No…. but I can.”

The voice came from the shadows above the small group, prompting the thugs to look up…. And yelp as a figure leapt down in front of them. Before they could react, a large wooden stick descended against their skulls, knocking them out instantly.

Leo could practically hear Raph wincing as their Father turned around and gave them a disapproving glare. “Get back into the sewers…” he ordered, ignoring how his oldest stepped forwards, “…. Now, before I truly lose my temper.”

Quickly, the group headed back across the streets, nipping back into the alleyway and heading down the open manhole, all huddling close together as their Father led them back home. Almost as soon as the door closed behind them, Yoshi turned to them and frowned.

“Donatello.”

Donatello nervously shuffled forwards, not looking his Father in the eye…. But Yoshi knelt down and gave him a reassuring smile. “Why don’t you go to your room…. I just need to speak to your brothers.”

The toddler didn’t hang around, practically racing towards the largish room and shutting the door behind him. Once it shut, Yoshi straightened up and turned his attention to the older three…. Who all resisted the urge to take a step back.

“…. Are you boys alright?” Yoshi asked, sighing in relief when the three nodded, “…. Excellent. Now what were you thinking!”

Leo, Raph and Mikey flinched as Yoshi began to pace in front of them. “Going up to the surface with no adult supervision when you know that we need to stay safe! What would you have done if I hadn’t noticed you were all gone?”

Before they could answer, Yoshi continued. “You are very lucky little boys…. Now, what were you boys doing up there?”

Raph stepped forwards, opening his mouth to tell their Father what happened… until Leo pushed him back and took his own step forwards. “It was my fault Father.”

“Your fault Leonardo?”

Leo hesitated slightly, before straightening up and nodding firmly. “Yes… my fault.”

There was silence as Yoshi scanned the three boys…. None of them knew what he was searching for. Eventually, Yoshi nodded, silently coming to a decision.

“Leonardo…” he said, clear disappointment in his voice, “… go to the dojo. I want you to do fourteen push-ups whilst I have a word with Raphael and Michelangelo.”

“Hai Sensei.”

As Leo rushed away, refusing to look at his brothers, Yoshi turned his attention back to the twins. “What really happened?” he asked patiently, trying not to smile as the two middle children seemed shocked at the question, “And please don’t lie to me.”

It took a few seconds, but Raph shuffled forwards, his head hung in guilt. “It was my idea…” he mumbled, “… Mikey wanted to go and play, so I thought it would be okay for us to just play in the alleyway.”

“…. I sensed that would be the case. Do you understand now, why it’s safer down here?”

Tears brimming in his eyes, Raph nodded.

“And you understand that you are going to be punished for it?”

Another nod.

“Good…. I am removing your toy box from your room for two weeks, and during that time, you can help me with some housework.”

Raph clearly wanted to protest, but quickly stopped himself and nodded again.

“Michelangelo.”

This time, it was Mikey’s turn to look guilty as he shuffled forwards.

“I know it wasn’t your idea…. But I had said no to you when you first asked to go to the surface, and the fact that you still went is very disappointing. I am also removing your toy box for a week and you can help me and Raphael.”

Nod.

“Good. Now, I am going to have a word with Leonardo about lying to me…. I suggest you two have a serious think about your actions today.”

Without waiting for an answer, Yoshi turned on his heel and headed towards the dojo. Upon entering, he could see Leonardo finishing off his push-up set and getting to his feet. 

“Do you know why you were being punished?” Yoshi asked, trying not to sound too harsh.

“…. I took the others outside.”

“No…” Yoshi knelt down and gently encouraged Leo to look him in the eye, “… it’s because you lied to me.”

“I-I- “

“- Don’t try to deny it. Raphael has already confessed that the trip to the surface world was his idea. You shouldn’t have tried to take the blame for his ideas.”

“B-but… I’m the big brother. What should I have done?”

“Ideally, I would have preferred you to come to me and tell me when Raphael had the idea…. I realise that Raphael is very stubborn, and getting him to change his mind on a decision can be very difficult, which is why I’m here. He’ll listen to me.”

Leo nodded in understanding. “So…. What should I do?”

“You’ll be sharing Michelangelo’s punishment. No toy box for a week and you’ll help with chores.”

“Hai Sensai.”

“Good...” Pulling his oldest into a hug, Yoshi sighed in relief, “… I am very glad that you’re alright my son.”

“…. Thanks for saving us Dad. Thank you.”

“I’ll always be there Leonardo. Always.”

…………………………………………………………………………..

After hugging his twins and reassuring them that he still loved them, Yoshi then made his way to Donatello’s room.

“Donatello?”

Almost immediately, the toddler peeked his head out from under the bed, and stared up at his Father.

“Any chance I can see all of you?”

Donny wriggled out from under the bed, a large book in his arms as he got to his feet. Once he was sure that his youngest was alright, Yoshi knelt down and slowly pulled him into a hug, giving Donny the chance to back out if needed.

“I’m glad you’re alright Donatello…” he whispered, “… I was very worried.”

“Sorry Daddy… I didn’t mean to be bad.”

Now this was a difficult decision. Yoshi knew that Donatello was smarter than most children his age…. But he was still only a toddler who idolized his older brother. Whilst he might have been unsure about going up to the surface, Donatello wouldn’t have been able to say no to his brothers.

“You weren’t bad Donatello….” Sighed Yoshi, “… just a bit silly okay?”

Nod.

“So, I think we can skip tonight’s story and you can go straight to bed, alright?”

Whilst Donny was clearly unhappy with the prospect of missing his bedtime story, he allowed himself to be picked up and helped into his pyjamas, before being tucked into bed.

“Daddy…. Are Mikey, Raphie and Leo in a lot of trouble?”

“… Let’s just say this home is going to be very clean for the next two weeks.”


	9. Learning Differences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Alright…” sighed Yoshi wearily, “… Raphael, stop hitting your brother! Michelangelo, stop poking Raphael to make him annoyed! Leonardo, don’t give Raphael that look just because he got into trouble. Donatello….”

Glancing over at his youngest, Yoshi couldn’t help but smile slightly. Ignoring how his brothers were bickering amongst one another, Donatello was focusing on is science work, reading over the passage on space and the universe.

Having recently turned four, Donatello was now working at a fifth-grade level and loving it.

Raphael hated it.

“Why doesn’t he have to do stupid maths!” he yelled, gesturing at Donatello (who briefly glanced up from the book, before deciding to ignore his brother), “If he doesn’t hafta do it, I’m not going to do it!”

Here we go again.

Making sure his voice was calm (knowing that anger or frustration would only escalate the situation), Yoshi took a deep breath. “Donatello has finished that work Raphael… it wouldn’t be fair to ask him to do it again.”

“So?”

“So, Donatello is doing work as well…. It’s just not the same as yours.”

It looked as though Raphael was finally calming down…. Until Leonardo decided to speak up. “Yeah…. Donnie’s smarter, so he has to do harder work.”

Great. Thank you, Leonardo.

Expecting Raphael to explode, Yoshi tensed in preparation. However, Raphael seemed upset by this news, and lowered his head, turning his attention back to his work.

And he wasn’t the only one who noticed this.

Yoshi watched as Donny, keeping a tight hold of his book, shuffled over to Raph’s side and glanced at the work. At that present moment in time, the group was working on addition up to 30, which Raphael was having slight trouble with.

For a short time, Donny just sat there, until he suddenly got to his feet and raced into his room.

“Donatello!” called out Yoshi, “Have you finished your work?”

Silence.

“Donatello?”

Minutes later, Donny came out of his room with a small tub of Lego that Yoshi had found a couple of weeks ago. Seating himself beside Raphael again (who was now looking very confused), Donny emptied the tub onto the floor.

“Look…” he whispered, picking six green bricks out, “… if I have six green bricks and you give me seven red bricks…” here he gestured for Raph to start handing him red bricks, “… how many bricks do I have?”

Having grabbed seven red bricks, Raph slowly started to add them to the green pile. “Seven…. Eight…. Nine… ten… eleven… twelve…. Thirteen!” He beamed at his younger brother, “Thirteen bricks!”

Clapping his hands eagerly, Donny pointed at a question in Raphael’s exercise book.

6 + 7 = ?

Immediately seeing what Donny was getting at, Raph wrote the answer down. “…. Can I use these Donny?” he asked, gesturing at the Lego, smiling when Donny nodded.

As Raph got on with his work, Donny went back to his science work as Yoshi stared at him in amazement.

How could he not see it before?

During their ninjutsu classes, Raph was usually one of the first to grasp the stance, usually a couple of minutes after Yoshi had demonstrated it himself.

He grasped the moves so quickly because he’d watched Yoshi do them….. it was all starting to make sense now.

And Donatello had seen it before he had.

……………………………………………………………………………

After the lessons, Yoshi allowed the children to have an hour break before they moved onto the ninjutsu. During this break, Raphael went to play with some old figurines that had been found near the dumpster near a toy store.

“Raphael…” began Yoshi, “… may I have a word with you?” 

Raph nodded, pushing himself to his feet and staring up at his Father.

“I’m… sorry my son.”

“…. For what?”

Yoshi sighed, “It did not occur to me, to give you visual aids during your lessons.”

“Huh?”

Taking a seat on Raph’s bed, Yoshi chuckled at the confused look on the child’s face. “I mean, I’m sorry I didn’t think about giving you items to count with. You are an excellent student when you can see what you need to do, like in our ninjutsu classes…. And I should have done that for other lessons.”

Raphael remained silent, staring up at his Father in confusion. Eventually, he shrugged. “I’m not mad…. Donny helped today.”

“Yes…. From now on, I shall try to add visual aids to our lessons.”

Before he could leave his son, Raphael’s next question stopped him in his tracks.

“Daddy… am I dumb?”

Yoshi span around in shock, “Pardon?”

Flushing slightly, Raph repeated the question, shuffling nervously from side to side. There was a brief moment of silence, before Yoshi knelt down and pulled his second oldest into a hug. “You are not dumb my son. Never believe that.”

“But- but Donnie- “

“- Donatello is different. Just as you and Leonardo are different, as well as you and Michelangelo. You are all different from each other, and that’s what makes you all so special.”

“Even me?”

Keeping his arms around Raphael, Yoshi nodded. “Of course. You are my most passionate son. Your enthusiasm and skill during our ninjutsu classes never fails to make me smile. You are strong, much stronger than any of your brother…. But more importantly, you are the protector.”

“Isn’t that Leo’s job?”

“Not exactly. Leonardo has responsibility because he is the oldest brother…. But I can predict that you will be the one that your younger brothers run to when they feel unsafe.”

“Really?”

Yoshi could tell that the idea of having this responsibility excited Raph, and he couldn’t help but smile at this.

“Really. So, I don’t want to hear anymore nonsense about you being dumb.... agreed?”

“Agreed!”

“That’s my good boy.”


	10. Quiet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“DONNY NO! STOP IT!”

“Yeah, stop it Donny!”

“You have to play Donny!”

Yoshi sighed wearily from his meditative position in his room.

It sounded like it was going to be one of those days.

His youngest son never liked loud noises or being forced to stay where he was, like when his brothers told him that he had to play with them and stay where he was.

They all had tantrums. Leo would sulk for hours, Raph would rant and rave, Mikey and Donnie would cry and cry and cry… but Donnie seemed to take things to another level.

Over the course of Donnie’s four years of life, Yoshi had noticed a particular pattern emerge. Whenever everything got too loud or his brothers were too close, Donnie seemed to get overwhelmed… which led to meltdowns.

These meltdowns were very different from tantrums. During tantrums, Donnie was in control and acted out because I wanted something…. This was not the case during a meltdown. Donnie wasn’t in control then, being so overwhelmed that he seemed incapable of calming down.

Quickly, Yoshi pushed himself to his feet and rushed into the living room, resisting to urge to tug at his hair when he saw Donnie backed into a corner, curled into a little ball as he rocked back and forth…. With the other three surrounding him.

“Boys…. Boys.” He warned, striding over quickly and pulling the three older boys away, “Remember, we talked about this. When Donatello starts getting like this, you need to give him some space.”

“But we just wanted to play!” exclaimed Leo, a disgruntled scowl on his face, “He never wants to play with us.”

Now this wasn’t strictly true. Donatello was often happy enough to play with his siblings…. But all three of them could be loud and hard to deal with.

“Leonardo….” Yoshi sighed, a warning tone in his voice, “… give your brother some space.”

As the three brothers all backed away, Yoshi knelt on the ground, still remaining a safe distance away from his youngest. “Donatello…. My son, are you alright?”

Donatello didn’t reply, staring at something unseen in the distance.

“Do you need some time alone?” Yoshi asked, keeping his voice low and soothing, “Or your relaxing music?”

Slowly Donatello nodded at this, his rocking slowing down as his eyes met his Father’s. Yoshi gave him a reassuring smile as he got to his feet, gesturing for his other sons to leave the room as he walked over to the slightly busted radio and switched it on, turning to the classical music channel.

“I’ll come back in, in half an hour.” He stated, backing out of the room.

Seeing that the other three had made their way to their rooms, Yoshi decided to take advantage of the silence…. Or, at least he wanted to.

“Why is Donny so weird?” he heard someone ask from behind him, causing him to turn around. Standing behind him, was eight-year-old Leonardo, a scowl on his face and his arms crossed as he tried to appear more serious.

“Pardon?”

“Why is Donny so weird?”

It took a few moments for Yoshi to wrap his mind around this, but once he did, he couldn’t help but feel a little bit disappointed in his oldest son. “Donatello is not weird Leonardo…” he gently scolded, “… he is just a little bit different than you.”

“He’s a lot different to us.”

“Not really…. Both you and Donatello are very serious about your studies. He prefers his science and his maths, whereas you enjoy history and ninjutsu. Raphael and Donatello share a passion for the toy cars and fixing them, making them go faster. Michelangelo and Donatello are close because Donatello has the imagination to deal with his brother at his most playful.”

“So why won’t he play with all of us? He has lessons with us, and trains with us, why won’t he play with us?”

Yoshi thought to himself for a few moments, before coming to a realisation. “The lessons are quiet… Donatello doesn’t like the noise of all of you playing together, so he gets overwhelmed.”

“So…. If we all want to play with him, we have to be quiet?!”

It was obvious from Leo’s tone, that he wasn’t impressed with the idea, So Yoshi knew that he had to come up with a compromise. 

“Well… it’s not so much about being quiet, it’s about letting Donatello leave when he wants. I heard you all shouting at him before… if Donatello feels overwhelmed, he should be allowed to go into another room and have some quiet time to himself.”

“…. But what if he doesn’t come back?”

“Then he doesn’t come back…” Yoshi sighed, “… you are not the leader so that you can force your brothers to play with you.”

“I know that…. Sorry Daddy.”

Yoshi was quick to accept the apology, giving his oldest a hug as the child made his way to his room. Minutes later, there was a cautious tugging on Yoshi’s pant leg, prompting him to glance down.

“Hello Donatello…” he chuckled warmly, kneeling down to lift the child into his arms, “… I hope everything is better now?”

Hesitantly, Donatello nodded, burying his face into his Father’s chest.

“… Would you like to talk about it?”

At first, Donatello didn’t say or do anything, before sighing. “I’ve been thinking…. When someone says red, there’s no way of knowing if your idea of red is the same as mine.”

Yoshi frowned in confusion, but Donny continued.

“And if we’re travelling at almost the speed of light and we’re holding a light, that light would still travel away from us at the full speed of light.”

“Donatello, my son…. I don’t understand.”

Donatello sighed again, “My head’s not the same as the others, isn’t it? Inside I mean…. The lessons are really easy to me, as if all the right numbers and words are already there.”

“You are a very clever boy Donatello, I know this is not what is troubling you… What happened today?”

“…. They really like shouting.” Donatello muttered, “I just wanted them to stop, but they just kept on shouting. I got a little angry, and usually I can calm down, but the anger just got bigger and bigger… and then everything went quiet.”

“Quiet my son?”

“Yeah…. I couldn’t hear them anymore. It was like when I read in my room or when we go for a walk, just the two of us! Or when I lie upside in my bed at night, and I can hear my heart.”

“…. And you couldn’t hear the shouting anymore?”

Donatello shook his head, “I can see them talking, but I can’t hear them…. I like it.”

Yoshi thought to himself for a few moments, before nodding in determination. “How about, when things start getting too loud for you, you go to your special room?”

“My special room?”

Striding over to one of the larger, unused room within the small, underground home, Yoshi pushed the door open. 

“I was going to gift this to you as a birthday presence…” began Yoshi, as Donatello glanced around the room in amazement, “… however, I don’t see any harm in giving it to you now.”

“All this…. Is mine?”

Yoshi nodded, “Raphael spends time in the dojo to relax, Michelangelo enjoys playing in the main living room with the small TV and Leonardo has started to meditate with me…. I think you deserve your own space as well, besides your bedroom.”

Placing his youngest on the ground, Yoshi watched as the child explored the room.

It was a simple set-out. With a basic table and chair, and a small bookshelf, the room didn’t have much in it…. But with Donatello’s growing interest in science and maths, it probably wouldn’t remain that way for long.

“I thought you could keep all your science books in here…” Yoshi explained, “… that means you’ll have more space for the other books.”

There was a brief silence, before Donatello squealed in delight and started to run around the room, acting more like his brothers than he ever had before.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” babbled the four-year-old, running up to his Yoshi and hugging his legs, before running out and heading for his room, “I’m gonna go get my books!”

Smiling at the happiness of his son, Yoshi slowly followed him. 

Everything was calm once again.


	11. Mourning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

Three years.

It had been exactly three years since his beloved Tang Shen had been murdered at the hands of Oroku Saki.

Whilst her body was still buried in Japan, in the garden of their old home under the cherry blossom trees, it didn’t mean that they couldn’t hold a memorial for her.

As the morning sun shone through the manholes of the sewer and the sounds of early morning traffic echoed around the damp walls, the atmosphere within their home was clearly different.

Yoshi felt tired. Not as though he hadn’t got enough sleep the previous night, but as though he had gone through something emotionally difficult.

He always felt this way around this time of the year.

As he walked towards the kitchen, he spotted Leonardo near his Mother’s corner, where they had placed photos and her favourite items as a small tribute to her. The nine-year-old was holding a pink, tissue flower, one that he had made during his free time, and placing it on the tribute.

The TV was quietly humming in the living room as Raphael and Michelangelo were watching an old home video that had been taken of the small family, back when Tang Shen was still alive. Raphael was mouthing along to the Japanese, grinning whenever his Mother interacted with younger him on the screen. Michelangelo was clutching his old teddy, burying his face in its soft fur as he remained uncharacteristically silent.

And Donatello…. Well, Donatello was nowhere to be seen.

Sensing that his youngest might need some time to himself, Yoshi decided to head to the kitchen and make breakfast…. Even if he didn’t really have the energy for it.

Less than half an hour later, he called the children to the table.

Thankfully, Donatello did emerge to eat, but the atmosphere at the table was tense…. Nobody wanted to break the ice.

Eventually, Mikey shuffled off of his chair and wandered around to his Father, clutching a piece of paper in his hands.

“Daddy?”

“Yes Michelangelo?”

Mikey held up the paper to show his Father the drawing he had made, a sad smile on his face. “Can I put this on the fridge Daddy?”

It was obvious that the drawing was of Tang Shen, seemingly dressed in a red kimono, her hair tied up and a smile on her face.

“Of course Michelangelo. It is…. Your Mother would have been proud of you.”

“Of us Daddy! Raphael helped me!”

Yoshi turned his attention to the other twin and smiled warmly at him, despite the fact that Raphael was staring into his bowl and not looking up.

Mikey beamed at this, racing into the kitchen in order to put the picture on the fridge.

During this time, Leonardo cleared his throat and cautiously spoke up. “Can we go for a walk today Daddy…. In the park? It feels cold out there, so we can have our hoods up.”

With their hoods up, the children would remain anonymous… the cold autumns and winters of New York did make life easier for the children., enabling them to act more like children and play with others of their own age.

“Of course Leonardo…” sighed Yoshi, smiling at his oldest, “… we will go after breakfast. The weather should be slightly warmer then.”

………………………………………………………………

Sometimes, Yoshi found America to be a confusing place. 

Even with the cold breeze, there were entertainers in the streets, trying to con people out of their hand-earned money.

His four children stuck close to him, with Donatello curled up in his arms as they wandered into the park. The autumn leaves created a blanket over the grassy ground, and in the distance, Yoshi could hear other children kicking the leaves about and jumping into large piles.

Usually, his own sons would be joining in with the fun… but not today. Today, the children stuck close to their Father and walked by his side.

“You may go and play if you wish…” he told his sons, slightly worried over their behaviour, “… I’m sure I can hear someone playing Batman over there?”

Usually, Mikey would rush off to find whoever was pretending to be his favourite superhero…. Not today.

“No thank you Daddy…” Micky sighed, “… can I just stay here?”

“… Of course. If you’re sure my son.”

………………………………………………………………………..

As the weather got colder, Yoshi made the decision to head home.

Almost as soon as they entered the room, Donatello wriggled out of his arms and raced to his ‘laboratory’, leaving the rest of his family behind.

“Daddy…”

Yoshi turned to his oldest three and tried to give them a reassuring smile, “Yes Leonardo?”

“… Is Donny okay?”

“… I don’t know my son. I don’t know.”

…………………………………………………………………………

Deciding to give Donatello some space before trying to speak to him personally, Yoshi went to meditate, leaving his oldest three to play in the living room.

After a couple of hours, he made his way to the laboratory, gently knocking on the door and making his way inside. 

“Donatello? My son?”

“… Here.”

Twisting around, Yoshi spotted his youngest huddled in the back, right corner of the room, knees pulled him to his face as he stared into the distance.

“Is everything alright my son?”

Donatello just shook his head.

“… Is it about today?”

Nod.

Yoshi took a deep breath and shuffled closer, “I know you miss your Mother… we all miss her, so we should all grieve together. Staying in here by yourself won’t help.”

“… Was Mommy’s death my fault?”

Yoshi felt as though someone had ripped his heart from his chest and crushed it in front of him. “What?!” he exclaimed.

“Did Mommy die because of me? I ran into the house and got into trouble, so Mommy had to save me.”

Not only was Yoshi surprised that Donatello could clearly remember that night (with him being so young when it happened), but knowing that his son blamed himself for Tang Shen’s death… it was heart-breaking.

“Oh, my son…” sighed Yoshi, holding out his arms, giving Donatello the chance to come and have a hug (which he accepted, running into his Father’s arms), “…. I need you to listen to me. It was not your fault, it will never be your fault…. The fault lies with Saki and Saki alone.”

“B-b-but- “

“- No buts…. Your Mother would not want you to suffer like this so needlessly. She loved you Donatello, never forget that. To save you, she would have done anything, even sacrificing herself.”

Donny buried his face into his Father’s chest and started to sob, not even flinching when the door to his lab slid open, revealing his three brothers standing there.

Knowing that his youngest son was a very private person, Yoshi prepared to shoo them out, but before he could, the three rushed inside and raced over.

They didn’t say anything though… much to Yoshi’s surprise.

Instead, they huddled close to their Father and brother, all joining in on the hug as Donatello continued to sob into his Father’s chest.

Dark clouds started to form over-head as rain fell down, indicating that Donatello’s pure grief was starting to affect Leonardo as well.

Eventually, Yoshi noticed tears on every child’s face.

“It’s alright my sons…” he whispered soothingly, “… your Mother is still with you. She’s always with you.”

“H-how?” asked Raphael, tears pouring out of his amber eyes

“… I see Tang Shen in all of you. You all share something with your Mother.”

This got the children’s attention, and they all stared up at him. 

“Leonardo… you have her patience and her love of history. Your Mother could spend hours reading over history books. She always wanted to visit England and see the castles.”

In fact, he had taken Tang Shen’s history book with him when they moved to America, and retrieved them after the death of Splinter in order to give them to his oldest for that very reason.

“Raphael, you have her passion and strength. When Tang Shen put her mind to something, she would put all of her efforts into succeeding. She was also enthusiastic and fun-loving, which is how you, Michelangelo, remind me of her. Life was meant to be fun, and she always tried to make it as fun as possible.”

Raphael and Michelangelo glanced at each other and beamed at the knowledge that they were like their Mother.

“What does Donny share with Mommy?” Leonardo asked.

Yoshi thought to himself for a few moments, before running his fingers through the purple hair of his youngest. “He has her sensitive nature. Donatello and Tang Shen both have a certain view of the world, and a natural curiosity to find out more. Because of this nature, they are peaceful… it takes a lot to make them angry.”

But when they get angry, they also get scary…. And angry Tang Shen was a force to be reckoned with. Thankfully, he’d never got to that point with Donatello.

“Your Mother is never truly dead, so long as you four continue to be yourselves.”


	12. Jedi In-Training

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

It had been sheer luck that Yoshi came across the DVDs.

 

He and the children needed to go for a supply run, donning their hats and coats and heading to the nearest supermarket.

 

Yoshi never liked to linger in case any Purple Dragons or Foot Ninja spotted them and reported back to Shredder…. But today was a special day.

 

Raph and Mikey both turned eight today, so they were allowed to go through the toy and DVD section, looking for anything they might fancy.

 

From an outside perspective, it might seem strange that Yoshi was able to afford all this stuff, but due to his family coming from money and the fact that he had taken over Splinter’s old job as a dojo instructor.

 

The Purple Dragons never came back to the dojo, so Yoshi decided to continue running it, pretending to be Mako’s son and taking Mako’s old nickname as an identity.

 

Due to the ever-looming threat of Shredder and his underlings, it was safer to live in the sewers, rather than the old home. If Shredder ever figured out what Yoshi was doing, he preferred to keep his family safe.

 

Anyway, back to the store.

 

With Donatello clinging onto his coat tails and Leonardo helping to pack the trolley by ticking items off the list, Yoshi watched as his twins raced back and forth from the toy and entertainment aisle, holding up birthday ideas, before rushing away and grabbing something else.

 

They had both been given a budget, and it was quite entertaining to watch them decide between the quality of the item or quantity.

 

“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” Mikey came running over, holding two DVD box-sets in his arms, “Look at these!”

 

Star Wars.

 

Ah yes, Yoshi had heard about this…. Many of his students compared him to an Obi-Wan Kenobi?

 

“These would be the only things you could afford Michelangelo, is that alright?”

 

Mikey nodded eagerly, placing the box-sets into the basket, just as Raph came rushing around the corner with a wrestling figure and kid boxing gloves that would cover his budget.

 

“Are we all done? Yes? Excellent, let’s go to the vegetable section.”

 

Aah… the sweet groans of children.

 

……………………………………………………………………………..

 

Later that evening, everyone huddled onto the rat-bitten couch, switching on the old TV (with the newish DVD player) and starting the first film.

 

“Isn’t there a particular order we have to watch these in?” Leonardo asked, a frown on his face, “I remember when we were at school, everyone said you have to watch number four first.”

 

“But this one has one of these I’s, so this one goes first!”

 

Mikey shook his head in disagreement with his twin, “Nuh-uh! Leo’s right, you have to watch number four first!”

 

“Which one is number four? There’re just V’s and I’s!”

 

Before Yoshi could start to explain roman numerals, Donatello moved from his side and hung off the edge of the couch, looking over his brother’s shoulder and pointing at the DVD case with IV on the cover.

 

“Oh…. Is that the fourth film Donny?”

 

Nod.

 

“Excellent…” Yoshi softly ruffled Donatello’s hair, “… we’ll only watch the one today, alright boys?”

 

Of course, he failed to predict the problem with watching a new film with children ranging from 5 to 9. 

 

The questions.

 

………………………………………..

 

“Why is Dark Vader going after the Princess?”

 

“It’s Darth Vader Mikey.”

 

*****

 

“I want a lightsaber! Donny, can you make one.”

 

Shrug.

 

*****

 

When Luke’s Aunt and Uncle were murdered and their home destroyed, Yoshi worried that this might upset his sons, bringing up painful memories about their mother… strangely enough, the children simply watched in fascination, no signs of distress anywhere.

 

The mini arguments soon sprang up again.

 

“Han shot him!”

 

“No Mikey! That lizard thing shot him first!”

 

*******

 

“No! Not Ben!”

 

********

 

“WOAH!”

 

Yoshi chuckled as all of his sons gasped in amazement as the Death Star blew up. Before long, Luke and Han were receiving their medals and the film came to a close. “What did you think boys?”

 

Mikey immediately clambered on to the sofa and eagerly stared up at his Father. “Can we watch the next one? Please, please, please, please, pleeeeeaaaaassssseeeee!”

 

Yoshi pretended to think about it for a few moments, before smiling and nodding, grinning when Mikey squealed in excitement and rushed to put the next DVD in.

 

There was then another couple of hours of questioning

 

………………………………………………………………

 

“Are they going to kiss? Yuck!”

 

*******

 

“He’s using the Force! He’s using the Force!”

 

******

 

“Did he crush his throat with the Force? Cool!”

 

“It’s not cool Raphie! It’s evil”

 

*****

 

// No. I am your father.\\\

 

Yoshi’s eyes widened in shock as the children all gasped…. Well, that was certainly a twist. To have one of the main villains as the protagonist’s Father would have a severe effect on the storyline. 

 

As the film came to an end, Yoshi simply nodded in Mikey’s unasked question, smiling as the now-eight-year-old, squealed in delight and put the sixth film in.

 

*****

 

“They’re twins like us Raphie!”

 

“Bagsey being Luke!”

 

“Awwwwww!!”

 

*****

 

“No Luke! Don’t join the Dark side!”

 

*****

 

“He’s shooting lightning from his hands! Do you think you can do that Donny?!”

 

Donny, who had shown himself to be a big fan of Luke, had buried his face into his Father’s side. At Mikey’s question, he shook his head, still refusing to look at the screen.

 

“I don’t think Donatello wants to be like the Emperor….” Sighed Yoshi, “… your brother isn’t a Sith is he?”

 

Mikey quickly shook his head, climbing up to pat Donny on the arm, before he turned his attention back to the screen.

 

“Go Vader!”

 

*****

 

When the film came to an end, Yoshi glanced at the clock and stretched out. Time for tea.

 

“Raphael. Michelangelo. What would you like for tea?”

 

“PIZZA!” “PIZZA!”

 

“Pizza it is.”

 

As he went to order the pizza and preparing to race to the dojo, where it was delivered to (thank god the sewers don’t have any traffic) Yoshi could hear his sons starting to chatter eagerly about the films.

 

“I’m being Luke Skywalker! I’m being Luke!” whooped Mikey as they all ran to the dojo that was inside their home, probably to grab some of the practice katanas as lightsabers.

 

“Do not actually hit each other!” Yoshi ordered, shaking his head as he heard Raph decide to be Han Solo and Leonardo decide to be Obi-Wan Kenobi. The other three children were clearly trying to get Donatello to be C3PO, but the youngest wasn’t having it.

 

“I want to be Leia!”

 

“Leia’s a girl Donny! You’re not a girl!”

 

“But she’s cooler than C3PO!”

 

Reluctantly, the other three agreed and they started up the game. Yoshi then ordered the pizza and prepared to go out. The dojo wasn’t far from their home, so he felt comfortable leaving nine-year-old Leonardo in charge for such a fleeting period of time.

 

“I’ll be back later boys!” he called, waiting until they all acknowledged him before heading out.

 

………………………………………………………………………..

 

For the next few weeks after the Star Wars half-marathon, Leonardo and Raphael slowly started to lose interest, going back to their old interests and hobbies.

 

Mikey however, grew more obsessed with the series, watching the first three with Donny and then pretending to be either a Jedi or a Sith, depending on who’s turn it was.

 

Speaking of which…

 

“Come on Donny!” Mikey whooped as the pair ran past their Father, towards the dojo, “It’s my turn to be the Jedi!”

 

“I know! I know!”

 

Yoshi couldn’t help but smile at the sight. With Mikey and Donny now starting to play together more and more, Donatello was coming out of his shell more, even starting to answer back to his brothers when they annoyed him.

 

It was perfect.

 

“What Sith are you gonna be Donnie?!”

 

“… Darth Maul.”

 

Yoshi tried to remember which one Darth Maul was as he made his way to the dojo. He didn’t like leaving the children in there alone, not with the dangerous weapons locked up in there, and with children who shapeshift and blow things up, a locked cabinet often made no difference.

 

When he entered the dojo, he saw Mikey pick up one of the training katanas (his chosen weapon for the last few weeks of training) whilst Donnie picked up a bo staff…. One that was much too large for him.

 

Before Yoshi could say anything, Mikey was lunging to the attack raising the wooden katana above his head and slamming it down.

 

“Michelangelo!” Yoshi cried out, rushing forwards to stop the attack, “Stop!”

 

Seconds before he made it, the katana was blocked by the wooden bo staff as Donnie laughed in delight.

 

“Michelangelo!”

 

The children span around to face their Father, dropping the wooden weapons to the ground in alarm as Yoshi strode closer.

 

“What have I told you about using the practice weapons as real weapons? Using them with the intent to hurt?”

 

“Not to, but- “

 

“- No. I don’t mind you using the wooden weapons lightly, tapping with no force…. But you were playing too roughly!”

 

“But Donny blocked it!”

 

“And if he hadn’t? What would you say if you’d hit him on the head Michelangelo?” Yoshi groaned, “That’s it…. The dojo is off limits except for lessons. I thought I could trust you four, but clearly I can’t.”

 

This got through to Mikey, whose eyes started to fill with tears as his bottom lip trembled. “I-I just wanted to be a Jedi!” he wailed.

 

And of course, because Mikey was crying, Donnie started to cry as well…. Albeit, a lot quieter.

 

“ENOUGH!” bellowed Yoshi, stunning the two into silence, “Neither of you are hurt, so there’s no reason to be crying. Michelangelo, go to your room and I will speak to you later.”

 

The eight-year-old didn’t hesitate as he ran out of the dojo and towards his own room. 

 

“Donatello.”

 

The five-year-old tearfully glanced up at him, immediately running into his Father’s arms when offered.

 

“I am sorry I scared you little one… but you understand why I was upset right?”

 

Nod.

 

“I just don’t want to see any of my sons hurt.”

 

“… I know Daddy. Sorry Daddy.”

 

“Not to worry little one.”

 

“… Is Mikey in trouble?”

 

Yoshi chose not to answer that, knowing that Donnie hated it when his brothers were in trouble. Instead he focused on another topic, “You used that bo staff very well…. Maybe you can use it during training tomorrow?”

 

“Really?”

 

“I promise…. Now I need to speak to your brother. Why don’t you go to your lab?”

 

“Okay Daddy!”

 

………………………………………..

 

“Michelangelo?” 

 

No answer.

 

Yoshi frowned, and he knocked on the door again. “Michelangelo?”

 

There was a crashing sound from within, before a young voice cried out, “Just a minute!”

 

After a couple of minutes of frantic crashing and banging, the door opened and Mikey beamed up at his Father. “Yes Daddy?”

 

Well, if Mikey was feeling upset before, he certainly wasn’t now. 

 

“What on Earth were you doing my son?”

 

Stepping to the side, to let his Father into the room, Mikey raced over to a fallen file of comics and started to put them back in the pile. “I really wanted to read one of my Captain America comics, but it was right at the bottom.”

 

“Ah… hence the small avalanche.”

 

“Yeah!”

 

“…. And are you feeling alright?”

 

Mikey nodded, a slightly sheepish look on his face. “Sorry about almost hurting Donnie Daddy… I was being silly.”

 

“I know… and I know you’re sorry.” Pulling Mikey into a hug, Yoshi sighed, “I was just worried about you boys. I don’t want any of you to be hurt.”

 

“I know… are the training weapons still going to be locked up?”

 

“Yes.”


	13. A Day in the Life of...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

The scream pierced through the early morning, echoing in the largish home underneath the streets of New York City.

 

Yoshi was immediately startled awake, practically leaping out of bed and into a defensive position.

 

Was it the Shredder? Was one of his children in danger? Were all of them in danger?

 

As he raced into the living room, he spotted Raphael racing out of his room and into Donatello’s room, with Yoshi close behind.

 

As he stopped outside of Donne’s room, he heard Raphael muttering soothingly to his younger brother.

 

“It’s okay Donnie….” He whispered, running his fingers through Donnie’s purple hair as the six-year-old sobbed into his pillow, “… it’s okay, please stop crying.”

 

Yoshi was loathe to interrupt as Donnie shot up and hugged his older brother, choosing to sob into his shoulder instead. His words were muffled as he tried to talk about whatever had scared him so.

 

None of it could be truly understood by Yoshi himself, but Raphael seemed to understand every word perfectly.

 

“I know Donnie…” the eight-year-old muttered, “…. But I’ll protect you. That’s my job remember? Daddy said so, and he’s right about everything.”

 

Donnie slowly nodded, his bottom lip trembling as Raphael gently let go of him and encouraged him to lie down, before reaching over to the bedside table. “Why don’t you listen to your science tapes for a bit…” he asked, grinning at Donnie as the child nodded, “…. Maybe they’ll help you sleep? Surely there’s a topic you find boring?”

 

Donnie giggled, wiping away his tears. “I like them all Raphie…. But I like the one on kinetic energy the best.”

 

“…. Right…. Just let me find it.”

 

Once he found it, Raph put the tape in and placed the headphones over Donnie’s ear.

 

“Are you going to stay Raphie?”

 

“Yeah…. I’ll stay Donnie.”

 

Soothed by Raphael’s presence, Yoshi made the decision to head back to his own room and leave the two to it.

 

They were brothers, and they needed to bond like brothers.

 

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

When their usual waking up time came around, they were all woken up in the usual way.

 

Mikey’s singing.

 

“It’s been a hard day’s night! BADADA DA DA DAAAAAA!” 

 

It wasn’t the most peaceful of alarm clocks, but it did the trick. Leonardo, Donatello and Yoshi were up by the end of the first line…. Raphael however, took a little bit longer, still curled up on Donatello’s bed as Mikey burst into the room.

 

The singing stopped, and a wicked smirk came over Mikey’s face.

 

Silently, he crept over to his sleeping twin…. Before pouncing on him and kissing him on the cheek. “Morning Raphie!” he yelled directly into Raph’s ear, racing away as Raphael startled awake.

 

“I’M GONNA KILL YOU MIKEY!”

 

It was the usual start to the morning really.

 

…………………………………………………………………………….

 

“Donatello. No homework at the table please.”

 

“It’s not homework! It’s my new book you got me!”

 

“Well no reading at the table please, it’s not very polite.”

 

Aah yes, the local charity books had been selling two copies of a book that covered powerful, royal women. One copy went to Donnie and the other went to Leonardo (who loved history), whilst Raph and Mikey got other treats.

 

For example, Mikey got a new CD which he had been playing over and over again…. it was the one present Yoshi slightly regretted giving his son.

 

“Michelangelo! Please do not use your spoon as a drumstick! Use it to eat!”

 

……………………………………………………………………………..

 

“Alright, now when I throw you into the air, try and kick the target.” Yoshi gently encouraged during their morning training session, smiling warmly as all of his sons eagerly stared up at him.

 

Today, they were learning how to do a high kick. When they were this young, instructors would often help the children reach the desired height by throwing them up into the air…. By the time they were teenagers, they would be expected to jump up and reach it themselves.

 

But for now, this was a lot cuter.

 

Leonardo was, of course, practically perfect in his precision, whereas Raph almost kicked the target off the wall.

 

Mikey wanted to go again and again.

 

Donnie however, insisted on doing the calculations before even attempting it.

 

“Donatello. Put away the papers please.”

 

“But- “

 

“- when it comes to ninjutsu, I find learning through doing is the best method. Now up you go!”

 

………………………………………………………………………….

 

“Darth Vader can’t be your best friend Mikey! He doesn’t exist!”

 

“Shut up Raphie! He is! He says so, listen!”

 

Mikey held his Darth Vader action figure up to Raphie’s ear, as though the toy was going to speak…. Which of course, it didn’t.

 

“Gimme that!”

 

Ignoring Mikey’s protests, Raph snatched the toy off him and skidded it across the wooden floor, in the direction of Donnie…. Who just moved to the side and continued with his maths.

 

“Raphael, don’t snatch…. And don’t throw toys at your brothers” he added, almost as an afterthought.

 

……………………………………………..

 

“Dad?”

 

Yoshi tore his attention away from the tiny TV, which was on popular TV soap (he couldn’t remember which one, they were all the same to him sometimes), and turned to his eldest.

 

“Yes Leonardo? Is something the matter?”

 

Leonardo was focused on the TV screen, watching two boys angle closer to one another until they finally kissed (Yoshi was inwardly cheering about this…. Those two had been dancing around each for ages now). “Are boys meant to kiss like that?”

 

“…. They’re in love my son. People in love do kiss like that.”

 

“I’ve never seen two men kiss like that though?”

 

Leonardo was ten, and very curious about the world…. Homosexual relationships were practically unheard of down in the sewers, so it was only natural he would want to know more.

 

“Well…. Let me try to explain it to you.” Yoshi sighed, encouraging his son to sit next to him, “Gender doesn’t matter, not with love… people might say that it does matter, that only men and women should fall in love with each other.”

 

“Why?”

 

“… I don’t fully know Leonardo. But I want you to remember, that no matter who you or your brothers choose to commit yourselves to, I will always support you.”

 

“…Raphie says that me and him have to threaten any partners Mikey and Donnie have… is that true?”

 

“No… that’s my job, you boys are my back-up for situations like that.” 

 

The joking tone in Yoshi’s voice caused Leonardo to relax slightly, but he still had a look of determination on his face.

 

“But I can threaten them if I want, right?”

 

“…. Why do you feel the need to threaten them?”

 

Leonardo shuffled nervously from side to side for a couple of seconds, before straightening up again. “Nobody is allowed to hurt my brothers, right?”

 

“Right.”

 

“…. People in your shows are always saying that love hurts… like when Gemma broke up with James. He was really hurt. So, if someone wants to hurt my brother’s by breaking up with them, then I have to tell them not to do that.”

 

It was a simplified version of the shovel talk, but Leonardo still managed to get the point across.

 

“Leonardo…” Yoshi sighed, “… I don’t think you’ll have to worry about your brothers dating any point soon. But when you’re older and that does happen…. Then you can talk to the partners, alright?”

 

“Thanks Dad!”

 

When Leonardo shuffled off his knee and ran off, with a beaming smile on his face, Yoshi couldn’t help but smile himself.

 

Leonardo would be a great big brother.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

The rest of the day passed by peacefully… well, as peacefully as having four boys could be.

 

Mikey and Raph jumped on every bed in the house, including Donnie’s bunk bed…. Which is why they have sore heads now.

 

After a short meditation that they all took part in, tea was had…. And then Raph wouldn’t share his wrestling toys.

 

“Raph! Daddy says you need to share!” Mikey yelled, trying to grab one of the figures.

 

“Go away Mikey!”

 

“Sharing is caring!”

 

“I DON’T CARE!”

 

“Alright!” Yoshi finally interrupted, breaking up the fight before it could really begin, “I think it’s time for little boys to go to bed.”

 

“But- “

 

“- Now please!”

 

…………………………………………………………….

 

“Today has reminded me how much I need you…” Yoshi whispered as he lay in bed, staring at a picture of his wife, “… nothing majorly bad happened, but with four completely different personalities to deal with, one day seems very long.”

 

He sighed again, “Donatello has been having nightmares recently… I want to help but Raphael has been so quick to respond… I don’t want to get in the way of those two bonding. Michelangelo is so much like you…. He has your laugh, whereas Raphael has your temper.”

 

Chuckle.

 

“You can imagine how well they get on…. Rather well actually. And Leonardo… Leonardo is going to be the big brother you always said he’d be… although I do pity any future partners the younger boys bring home. Leonardo seemed determined to protect them from any heartbreak.”

 

Placing the picture back in its original position, Yoshi settled down into his bed, turning his eyes to the ceiling. “I miss you... I miss you so much.”


	14. Park Game

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Boys! Boys!”

 

Yoshi waited patiently by the river in Central Park, listening to his children’s laughter as they raced down the nearby hill.

 

It was a gorgeous day in the middle of October, in the middle of the week when all other children were in school.

 

Yoshi’s own children had been working hard all week, so Yoshi believed they were due some well deserved playtime out of the sewers.

 

As they came racing down the hill, he could see that Raph and Mikey both had sticks in their hand, sword-fighting as they practically rolled down the hill. Leonardo wasn’t scolding them, for once, in fact, he was laughing.

 

Donatello wasn’t far behind, a book under his arm as he raced after them. He was a little bit more cautious than his brothers, but still clearly having fun.

 

“Do we have to go home now Daddy?” Mikey asked, panting slightly from all the running.

 

Yoshi made a show of looking at his watch, before smiling gently at the boys. “I’m sure we can stay out here a little while longer.”

 

The boys all whooped, dipping their muddy, second-hand wellies in the edge of the river in order to try and clean them slightly, before rushing of again… to play in more mud. 

 

Yoshi rolled his eyes.

 

He would never understand those boys.

 

…………………………………………………………………………………….

 

Further up the bank, Donatello had found an abandoned ball, placing his book on the ground as he picked it up into his hands.

 

Gently kicking it up and down, Donnie beamed in delight, finding an unknown joy in such a simple task… until Mikey and Raph came charging into him.

 

“Come on Donnie!” Mikey cheered, pinning his younger brother to the ground, “You gonna play football with us?!”

 

“Mikey get off him!” Leonardo scolded, tugging Mikey off of the youngest, “Donnie doesn’t like that, remember?”

 

“Sorry Donnie!”

 

As Donnie was pulling a face at all the mud staining his clothes, Raphie picked up the ball and started to race around the other three.

 

“Mini world cup!” he cried out, referring to the fuzzy game that they’d seen on their old TV screen, “Me and Mikey against Donnie and Leo?”

 

Mikey whooped in agreement as Leo beamed at his youngest brother. “What do you say Donnie? Wanna play some football?”

 

Glancing over at his book, Donnie frowned… until Raph took his coat off and placed it over the top of the book. 

 

“There…” he exclaimed, “… now if it rains, your book isn’t gonna get wet.”

 

Donnie was delighted at this, clapping his hands together before following his brothers over to a clear patch of grass, moving over to the ‘goalie’ area.

 

They played football for a short time…. Until the ball was kicked too far and rolled down the hill behind Donnie.

 

“Raph!”

 

“I’ll get it!” Donnie cried out, spinning around and racing down the hill after the ball…. Completely missing the older boys who were hanging about near the trees, leaning on the bicycles. When a tree stopped the ball in its’ tracks, Donnie picked it up… unaware of the fact that the older boys had followed him.

 

“What’s with the hair freak?”

 

Donnie span around and stared up at the boys, his arms tightening around the ball as he desperately tried to figure out a way to get around them without giving them a nasty shock. Before he could do anything however, one of the boys grabbed the ball and threw it up into the branches of the trees, laughing as it got wedged in amongst the leaves.

 

Thankfully, the older boys had had all there fun, and left, laughing as they went…. Completely missing how Donnie scaled up the tree to get the ball.

 

It was high, but with the new climbing frame that his Father had installed in their training gym, it was easy to get to the branch that the ball was lodged in-between…. Getting down however… well that was another matter.

 

“Raphie!” He cried out, “Leo! Mikey!”

 

……………………………………………………………………………….

 

“Donnie’s been gone ages!” Raphie growled, glancing down the hill, trying to see if his youngest brother was making his way back, “The ball didn’t go in the lake did it?”

 

Leo shook his head, going to pick up Raph’s coat and Donnie’s book. “No… I’ve got a bad feeling, we should go and get Dad.”

 

“… Or we can go and get him ourselves.”

 

Before Leo could protest, Raph and Mikey went racing down the hill, both calling out Donnie’s name… and Leo just sighed.

 

“Great…” he whispered, “… This is why I’m the older brother!” He yelled after the twins, as he followed them down the hill.

 

When they reached the bottom of the hill, they could hear Donnie calling out for them…. But they couldn’t see him at all.

 

“DONNIE?!” Leo cried out, frowning when he heard the answering call come from somewhere above them, “DONNIE?!”

 

“Up here!”

 

In unison, the three older brothers turned their attentions upwards, their eyes widening when they spotted Donnie waving at them from the top branches.

 

“Can you help me down?” he asked, his fingers turning white with the force of his grasp, “It’s really cold up here!”

 

Almost immediately, Leo turned to Mikey. “Can you turn into something that can fly? Or climb really well?”

 

Mikey nodded, his skin visibly turning into feathers as he turned into an eagle… a small eagle, but it should be large enough to lift Donnie off of the branches. The claws sliced through the thick material of the coat, but thankfully, Donnie had a large jumper on as well so he didn’t feel it.

 

Unfortunately, before Mickey could safely place his brother on the ground, there was a short from jut behind them.

 

“MICHELANGELO!”

 

Mikey startled in shock, his claws relaxing around Donnie… which of course meant that the youngest Hamato boy fell to the ground, shrieking in fear…. Thankfully, before he could hit the ground, Yoshi had sprinted close enough to leap forwards and catch his son mid-air.

 

“What were you thinking?!” he hissed, his voice trembling slightly with the fear and shock of seeing an eagle carrying his son, “What if someone had seen you?!”

 

“But they didn- “

 

“- But they could have Michelangelo! They could have.” Yoshi then turned his attention to Donnie, “And what were you even doing in that tree?!”

 

“I needed to get the ball Daddy!”

 

Yoshi glanced at the ball that had fallen to the ground, having obviously been dropped when Mikey went to retrieve Donnie from the tree.

 

“That was very foolish of you…” he eventually concluded, “… You are a very smart young man Donatello, surely you know how hurt you could have been, had you fallen?”

 

He could practically see Donnie doing the calculations in his mind.

 

“Badly…” he interrupted, before Donnie could finish, “… you would have been badly hurt and I do not have the medical training necessary to help you… and we can’t risk going to a hospital.”

 

It took a couple of moments, before Donnie nodded sheepishly, “I know Daddy... sorry.”

 

“Good… now let’s go home before we all catch our death of cold.”

 

“Can we keep the ball Daddy?”

 

“… No kicking it about at home, alright?”

 

Needless to say, one of Yoshi’s antique vases didn’t last long.


	15. LH

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who'll decide where to go.”

 

Donnie kept his eyes on his new Dr Seuss book as he continued, his footsteps echoing throughout the sewer walls as he read out loud.

 

At seven-years-old, he was finally allowed to venture out of the home for a short period of time, so long as he didn’t go past the second manhole cover that was directly under a busy road.

 

He would have followed that rule today, he usually does…. But he could hear someone sobbing up ahead.

 

What if they were hurt? Or lost?

 

They might need help!

 

Straightening up in determination, Donnie took one more step outside of the invisible boundary line (tensing up briefly as though his Father was going to come running after him), before rushing over to where he heard the crying.

 

It was coming from inside another pipe, quite a large one thankfully, so Donnie was able to step onto the ledge and make his way inside.

 

“Hello?” he whispered, remaining tense just in case it was actually a threat, “Hello?”

 

There was a muffled curse from further in the pipe, before a slightly older voice suddenly spoke up. “Get away kid… I don’t want to hurt you.”

 

“… You sound sad though.”

 

“Get. Away!”

 

Donnie flinched back violently, clutching his book close to his chest, before straightening up and forcing a determined look on his face. “I’m coming in!” he announced, “Daddy says you always have to help someone if they’re sad.”

 

As he ventured further into the slippery pipe, he could hear someone else shuffling backwards.

 

“I-I said get away! It’s not safe!”

 

“… You mean you’re not safe? Or is there something dangerous near you?”

 

“… What?”

 

Donnie crept a little bit closer, “When you say it’s not safe, do you mean that you think you’re not safe? Or is it because there’s something dangerous near you?”

 

“… I can’t believe you’re actually asking me this.”

 

“Daddy says I think to much…. But I just think it’s important to know all the details.”

 

Now that he was closer, Donnie could see the outline of a boy a little bigger than himself (not that it really took much). The other boy was huddled against the wall of the drain pipe, head buried in his knees…. So, he didn’t see Donnie creeping closer.

 

Well, not until the seven-year-old tapped him on the shoulder.

 

“What the-!”

 

The other boy flinched away violently, hands and feet scrambling on the damp floor as he twisted around to stare at Donnie. ”What the hell are you thinking?!”

 

Donnie was unfazed, although he did frown slightly at the shouting, “I wanted to make sure you were okay… are you hurt?”

 

“N-no! Just get away!”

 

He was lying. Even though the sewers were dark, with very little natural light to guide the way, Donnie could see a dark stain on the boy’s t-shirt, near the upper shoulder. When Donnie pointed this out, the older boy scowled and shuffled even further into the pipe.

 

“Leave it… it’s nothing.”

 

“It’s not nothing, it’s a wound…. Daddy’s been teaching me some first aid, maybe I can help?”

 

“I said GET AWAY!”

 

As the other boy raised his voice, the shout echoing throughout the sewer, his eyes glowed amber and his teeth seemed to sharpen, prompting Donnie to take a step back in shock. Almost as quickly as he got angry, the other boy calmed down, a devastated look on his face.

 

“Oh god…” he whispered, “… he was right… I am a monster.”

 

At this, Donnie shook himself and stepped forwards once again, kneeling in front of the older boy, “You’re not a monster… you’re just scared. It’s okay, me and my brothers do bad things when we’re scared.”

 

“Huh?”

 

Donnie nodded eagerly, “Yeah! Leo creates little storms! Raphael makes things explode and Mikey’s hair goes white… okay that’s not very destructive, but his scream is really loud.”

 

The other boy just stared at him, until Donnie shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably.

 

“I’m Donatello… what’s your name?”

 

“…. Just call me LH.”

 

“LH?” Donnie thought to himself for a few moments, before beaming, “I like it! Me and my brothers have really complicated names!”

 

LH chuckled, “Yeah… Donatello is a little bit complicated. Are you all named after Renaissance artists?”

 

Having read up on the period and their namesakes, Donnie nodded eagerly. “Yep! Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Donatello.”

 

“How… unique.”

 

Donnie just nodded eagerly, going to sit by LH and carefully examining him from head to toe. Now that he was closer, he could see that LH’s skin seemed a little bit tougher than the average human’s, and his fingernails even looked as though they were claws.

 

“Why are you staring at me?”

 

Donnie flinched slightly in guilt, “I was wondering if you were mutant…. Like me and my brothers?”

 

“…. No…. I’m just a freak, a science experiment gone wrong.”

 

“You don’t look like you’ve gone wrong to me?”

 

LH gave him an incredulous look, one eyebrow raised, but before he could say anything, the sound of unfamiliar voices filled the sewers, causing the pair to startle and shrink back into the darkness.

 

“Are you sure it came down here?”

 

“Yeah. Number seven spotted him disappearing down the manhole.”

 

LH tensed at the sounds of the voices, a low rumbling growl building in his throat, only quietening down when Donnie placed his hand on his knee.

 

“They’re after me…” LH groaned, “… they’re after me!”

 

“…. Why?”

 

LH just shook his head and continued to back away, “I need to get out of here!”

 

Quickly seeing that LH was getting panicked, Donnie placed a calming hand on his arm and shuffled forwards slightly, placing his hand on the wet ground (wincing as he imagined what germs would now be on his hand).

 

“What are you- “

 

“-Shhhhh!”

 

Donnie focused as the lights of the torches came closer and closer…. Until they suddenly went out and the strangers cried out in shock.

 

“What the- “

 

“Where’s the light?!”

 

LH watched as small currents of electricity zipped up Donnie’s arms, his eyes glowing for a moment before they disappeared.

 

“What did you do?” LH hissed.

 

“Don’t worry about it…” Donnie grabbed his arm, “… come on! Come on!”

 

He pulled LH further into the shadows, “We need to get you out of here. Follow me.”

 

……………………………………………………………………………………..

 

“Boys?”

 

Leo, Raph and Mikey all glanced over at their Father, who was staring at the front door.

 

“Have you seen your brother?”

 

They all shook their heads, causing Yoshi’s frown to deepen.

 

“That’s what I was afraid of.”

 

…………………………………………………………………

 

“Where are we going?”

 

Donnie continued to pull on LH’s hand, “We need to get you away from those men… there’s an exit tunnel that leads out of New York just up this way.”

 

“How do you know this?”

 

“My Dad found the old blueprints for the sewers. I’ve read over them time and time again… they’re quite easy to remember actually, if you learn the pattern and memorise all the key points.”

 

He continued to tug at LH’s arm, until they came to the end of the tunnel, where a metal ladder was waiting. “Go on…”

 

LH frowned, “What?”

 

“Go up the ladder… you’ll be safe once you leave New York.”

 

“… And what if I stay here?”

 

Donnie frowned, “Well…. I suppose we might have some room for you at home and- “

 

“- no, no, no….” LH shook his head, “… I’m too dangerous. I mean, is there another large space down here where I can stay?”

 

Donnie was stunned into silence, before noticing the seriousness in LH’s face.

 

“Umm…” He shuffled nervously from side to side, “… there is a few empty chambers down that tunnel to your right I think…. But wouldn’t you prefer- “

 

“- No… I’m too dangerous to be up on the surface.” LH turned away from Donnie and glanced in the direction he was pointing, “Just up there?”

 

“Y-yeah.”

 

“Thank you…” LH turned to Donnie and smiled, “… you’re a good person Donatello. I won’t forget this.”

 

Before the child could say anything else, LH rushed in the opposite direction and into the shadows, leaving Donnie standing alone, staring after him.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

“And where have you been?”

 

Donatello winced, turning to the side to see his Father staring at him, arms crossed in mild disappointment.

 

“I-I…”

 

“You went further than you should have done… I give all of you explicit instructions as to where you can and cannot go in these sewers, and what do you do? You disobey me!”

 

Donnie was silent for a brief moment, before nodding. “Yes… but I had a good reason, I promise!”

 

“Oh?”

 

“…. There a boy, probably a little older than Leo. He was being hunted like a wild animal, I had to help him!”

 

“And where is this stranger now?”

 

Donnie winced at the cool tone, “I-I… he didn’t want to go back up to the surface, so he asked about other spaces, like ours, in the sewers. I pointed him in the right direction and he left… then I came home. I promise!”

 

Yoshi was silent for a few moments, before he simply nodded. “A good cause…. However, you are still grounded. One month, and not a second shorter.”

 

Donnie didn’t seem that fussed.

 

“And limited access to your lab.”

 

“Daddy!”


	16. In Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

“… and finish!”

 

Yoshi slammed his staff against the stone floor, resisting the urge to beam in delight as his sons seamlessly bowed at the same time and straightened up, showing the proper respect.

 

“Alright, come sit down.”

 

The four were quick to obey, racing over and sitting in front of their Father, gazing at him as he knelt down in front of them.

 

“You may have some time to relax, before we go into the sparring session of the training. Today, it will be Raphael versus Leonardo, and then Michelangelo versus Donatello.”

 

He needed to do it that way… whilst Leonardo was good at keeping his powers and strength under control, as was Michelangelo, Raphael had been having some difficulties.

 

He’d almost set fire Mikey’s eyebrows the last time he paired him up with his twin in these sparring sessions

 

And Donatello…. Well let’s just say Yoshi wasn’t pairing him and Raphael up again for a while.

 

Raphael needed to learn how to control his temper, and until he could do that, he would be paired up against his older brother…. Less chance of him seriously hurting Leo.

 

“Michelangelo. Donatello… you’ll go first. Today, we’ll practice with bo staffs.”

 

Donnie was thrilled to hear this, racing over to grab his, before the pair made their way into the training ring.

 

“And Michelangelo, please try to keep your shape-shifting to a more reasonable please. No baby elephants today!”

 

Mikey nodded, grabbing his own bo staff. The pair stood opposite one another until their Father called for the match to start.

 

“Begin!”

 

Mikey leapt at his brother, widely jabbing out at him. Donnie darted left, right and then up into the air.

 

“Try and go on the offense Donatello!” Yoshi gently asked, “You need to learn how to do both!”

 

Donnie nodded, diving to the side, before sending a bolt of mild electricity at his brother… who had turned into an electric eel.

 

“Very quick-thinking Michelangelo!” Yoshi praised, nodding his approval.

 

Mikey grinned and shot to his feet, racing at his brother once again. Eventually, Donnie was knocked to the ground and match was declared a win in Mikey’s favour. Then, it was the other two boys’ turn.

 

“Raphael, try and keep all explosions to a minimum… Leonardo, try to avoid rain this time. It took forever to get the water mopped up last time. In fact…” He smirked at the pair, “... let’s give you older boys a bit of a challenge. No powers at all. And your weapon is the single katana.

 

The two boys nodded, facing one another as they each grabbed a katana.

“Begin!”

 

Immediately, the boys leapt at each other, the wooden katanas banging against each other. Raphael quickly went on the offensive, forcing Leo to take several steps back in order to maintain his proper stance.

 

“Very good Raphael…” Yoshi praised, “… using your strength against Leonardo gives you the upper hand. Very good.”

 

He always believed in praising all of his sons equally… they all deserved it after all.

 

Leonardo then started using the walls like springboards, propelling himself off of them in order to launch himself at his brother, who was forced to go on the defensive.

 

“Excellent use of your environment Leonardo!”

 

Whilst he had the upper hand, Leonardo pressed the advantage, jumping over Raphael and stepping on his sword. Before he could then knock Raphael to the ground, his younger brother growled and used his superior strength against Leonardo once again, sending Leo flying backwards.

 

“Use your surroundings to your advantage boys! Make them fight for you!”

 

Leonardo certainly did that, racing over to the Japanese rock gardens that sat in the meditation corner, grabbing a handful of sand before spinning around and throwing it Raphael. 

 

It was probably just meant as a distraction, but it went a little too well.

 

Raph yelled in pain as the sand went into his eyes, dropping his weapon to try and reduce the pain.

 

“RAPH!” Leo yelled in shock, dropping his own weapon and rushing over to his brother, closely followed by Yoshi and the other two brothers. They all stopped in their tracks however, when Raphael grabbed a random object from the ground, charging it and throwing it blindly in the direction of his family.

 

The younger children were soon knocked to the ground by their Father, as Leonardo dived to the side.

 

“Raphael! Please try and calm down!” Yoshi begged, silently gesturing for his other children to stay back, “Calm your thoughts my son!”

 

Raphael didn’t listen, continuing to flail about as the sand blinded him.

 

“Leonardo! You need to make it rain!” Yoshi yelled, “Leonardo! The rain!”

 

He finally managed to grab onto his second oldest, gently pinning his arms by his side and holding Raphael’s head back, eyes up to the ceiling. As Raph started to whimper with the pain, rain began to fall from dark clouds that had gathered up above.

 

Gently brushing one of the training towels over Raph’s eyes, Yoshi cleaned the sand out of his son’s eyes as quickly as possible, without hurting him any further. Once the majority of the sand was wiped away, Yoshi lifted Raphael into his arms and quickly headed towards the bathroom.

 

“Prepare for your morning lessons boys…” He gently ordered his other three children, “… I will be through in a few minutes.”

 

…………………………………………………………

 

Once he was sure that all the sand had been safely washed away from his son’s eyes, Yoshi felt as though he could breathe a little easier.

 

“How are you feeling?” he asked, running his fingers through Raphael’s red hair, “Don’t rub your eyes for a while, some of the sand might- “

 

“- Is he in trouble?”

 

Yoshi frowned, “Pardon?”

 

“Leo… is he in trouble?”

 

Yoshi thought to himself for a few moments…. Yes, he supposed Leonardo was in a little bit of trouble. Sand was a very dangerous thing to throw around in a simple training session, especially with the risk of injuring someone like what happened today.

 

And yet, it was a clever tactic to use.

 

“Yes…” he eventually decided, “… Leo knew there was a risk when he threw the sand at you, and this was a simple training exercise. It is intended to teach, not to hurt. I will be having words with him.”

 

Raph snarled, “Good!”

 

This took Yoshi by surprise, as he blinked in shock. “I beg your pardon?”

 

“He’s never in trouble!” Raph yelled, “You never shout at him, but you always shout at me!”

 

“Raphael, I- “ Yoshi stopped.

 

How could he explain to a child that Leonardo hardly ever got shouted at, because Leo was hardly ever in trouble. He knew how it might seem to his second oldest… Leo and Donnie were hardly ever naughty, and Michelangelo antics were usually quite amusing, which meant that Yoshi had a twinge of laughter in his voice when he scolded the second youngest.

 

Raphael was usually the only one who really got shouted at.

 

“Raphael…” Yoshi sighed, pulling his second oldest closer, “… I know what it seems like. I know that it feels like you are the only one who gets into trouble.”

 

“I am!”

 

“No, you’re not…. Leonardo has a habit of getting underfoot when I’m trying to have some alone time. He gets scolded for that a lot. Michelangelo gets into trouble, almost as much as you, except he apologies for it straight away and accepts whatever punishment I decide without argument… can you say the same?”

 

Raph was silent…. He couldn’t argue with that.

 

“And Donatello is always staying up past his bedtime in order to read his books…. He gets into trouble quite a lot for that as well. But I can’t shout at him, because it’s the middle of the night and I don’t want to disturb any of you.”

 

Raph nodded in understanding, allowing his Father to pull him closer.

 

“So, you see Raphael, you are not the only one who gets into trouble…. You are just… more persistent in your views.”

 

“Donnie says I’m… stubborn.”

 

“That too…. It’s not a bad thing my son.”

 

“… Promise?”

 

“I promise Raphael.”


	17. Fathers and Sons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Give me the Gameboy Mikey!” Raph yelled, tackling his younger twin to the ground as he tried to grab the handheld console, “C’mon, it’s my turn!”

 

“Get off Raphie!” the other ten-year-old yelled, trying to squirm away.

 

As those two squabbled on the floor, Donnie and Leo were seated on the large bed that had been provided for them in the ferry cabin.

 

Their Father had decided that it would be easier for them to rent out a room on a ferry, than try and remain anonymous on a plane. Yes, it would take longer, but hopefully they’ll get there before the Obon Festival.

 

Of course, it meant they were all confined in a small room together.

 

Whilst the twins always tended to be loud, the oldest and the youngest were often happiest to sit and read… until they got dragged into the fight as well. 

 

It had been around six years since the death of Tang Shen, and Yoshi was determined to spend the time in Japan, visit the grave and his old Master. Tang Shen had been adopted and raised by a Master, known as the Ancient One, who also trained Hamato Yoshi and Oroku Saki.

 

The two men fell in love with Tang Shen, but she only fell in love with one of them.

 

And the rest is history.

 

……………………………………………………..

 

The gardens were still as he remembered them.

 

The pink blossoms of the surrounding trees. A crystal-clear pool of water in an ornate fountain, surrounded by gorgeous flowers, tall and elegant as they reached for the sun.

 

The Ancient One, who was a rather short, round man, was taking his washing down from the line. As Yoshi and the four children approached from behind, the Ancient One suddenly straightened up.

 

“Whoever it is, begone!” The short man demanded, “I have no time for any mischief today!”

 

“Master, it is me…. Hamato Yoshi.”

 

The Ancient One span around, his eyes wide in shock as he stepped closer to the taller man. “Yoshi? Is it really you?!”

 

Yoshi bowed low, as a sign of respect to his old master, smiling softly as the older man came closer. “I am sorry I didn’t come to visit sooner… staying in Japan- “

 

“- was what you should have done!” The Ancient One scowled, before his face softened, “But I understand why you made that choice. And which grandson is this?”

 

Yoshi glanced to his side, only to see that Mikey was the only child standing next to him… the others were racing around the garden, even Donatello.

 

“This is Michelangelo, you may remember him as- “

 

“- the little shapeshifter!” The Ancient One beamed, “Tang Shen was very excited when he shifted into a little bird… though apparently he did fly all over the house before she managed to catch him.”

 

Yoshi chuckled at the memory, watching as Raph raced past and tapped Mikey on the shoulder. “TAG!”

 

Mikey laughed with glee and ran after his twin. “No fair Raphie!”

 

As Yoshi apologised to the Ancient One, the four children raced towards the edge of the garden, near several well-trimmed bushes. Raphael was way in front, which is probably why he spotted the skeletal hand first.

 

“Wait!” he ordered his brothers, “Time out!” He pointed at the hand, “Look…. There’s someone hiding in the bushes”

 

Mikey stepped closer, stopped only by Raph’s arm, “What do you think he’s doing?” the younger twin asked.

 

“Maybe he’s lost or something?” Donnie questioned, hiding behind Raphie.

 

Raph nodded in determination, stepping a little bit closer. “Hey Mister!” he cried out, “You alright?”

 

Silence.

 

And the skeletal monster burst out from the bushes and growled at the children, the sound echoing throughout the garden.

 

All four of them screamed in fear, with the two oldest grabbing the younger brothers and racing back to their Father.

 

“BOOGIE MAN!” Mikey screamed.

 

“GHOST!” As Raph was leading the way, he reached Yoshi first, grabbing at his clothes, “GHOST!”

 

“IT’S A SKELETON DADDY!” This time, it was Donatello who was screaming.

 

Yoshi frowned in concern, pulling his children into a hug (as much as he could with four of them). “Sssh, sssh…” he whispered, “…. Remain calm and explain what happened one at a time, please.”

 

“Father…” Leonardo spoke up, being the oldest at twelve, “… there was a really freaky man in the bushes!”

 

Sighing, Yoshi made his way over to the bushes in question and looked through them.

 

Nothing.

 

“I don’t see anything…” he eventually sighed, turning back his sons, grunting as Mikey ran at him for another hug.

 

“It was there Dad! Honest!” the ten-year-old exclaimed.

 

As the others nodded, Yoshi turned to the Ancient One. “I’m sorry… they’ve had a long journey. Boys, turn around and say hello to your Grandfather.” He then gestured at each of the children in turn, “You’ve met Michelangelo, and here is his twin, Raphael. My oldest, Leonardo and my youngest, Donatello.”

 

The Ancient One nodded, “As have you… I appreciate the visit Yoshi. We both loved Tang Shen very much. We shall all pay our respects to her together.”

 

…………………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

Later that evening, they all made their way to the site where Tang Shen had been buried. The Ancient One had made sure that the grave was more traditional in the years that they had been away, and it looked beautiful.

 

Just like Tang Shen was.

 

“I have missed you my love…” Yoshi whispered to the grave, “… I am sorry I have not been here sooner.” He glanced back at the boys, “We’ve all missed you.”

 

One by one, the children knelt in front of the grave in order to pay their respects. Donnie went last, placing some flowers on the grave. “Hello Mummy…” he whispered, “… I know you might not recognise me now. Daddy says I’ve grown a lot in America, he even says I might get taller than him… I’m not sure though.”

 

As Donnie continued to talk, the others kept their distance, not wanting to disturb the youngest. He had so very few memories of his Mother.

 

When the sun had half-way set, the group made their way back home.

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

All of the boys were sharing one room in the Ancient One’s home. Leonardo and Raphael had fallen asleep fairly quickly, whereas Donatello had spent around one hour reading his chemistry book… it was still resting on his chest as the youngest slumbered.

 

Mikey however, was still wide awake, clutching his covers as he stared at the nearby wall…. Which began to glow red.

 

“Ummmm, guys?!”

 

Slowly, the others woke up, all turning their attention to the wall as the skeletal figure ghosted into the room. Almost immediately, the four huddled together, with Leonardo making sure that his younger brothers were behind him… just in case there was any danger.

 

“Silence children…” the skeletal figure hissed, “… if you scream, I will eat your souls!”

 

They all glanced at each other, before;

 

“AAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHH!”

 

Mikey shifted into a cheetah and was the first through the paper door… yes, through it. He was followed by the other three, who were all crying out in fear as well. Racing down the stairs, they called out for their Father, who was meditating in the living room.

 

Mikey shifted back into his usual body, before he leapt at his Dad, closely followed by the other three. 

 

“It’s alright…” Yoshi tried to soothe them, concerned that even Raph and Leo were so scared, “… everything is okay now.” He smiled apologetically at the Ancient One, “The visit must have stirred some… unpleasant memories. I’ll help them get settled down again.”

 

As he headed back up the stairs with his sons, he heard the Ancient One chuckle fondly. “Kids!”

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

The following morning, the Ancient One had to leave on some business, so the others saw him off.

 

“Bye Grandfather!” Donnie waved.

 

“Bye! Don’t forget to write.”

 

Raph groaned at his twin, “He’s not going for that long doofus!”

 

“I’m not a doofus! You’re a doofus, doofus!”

 

As the Ancient One made his way down the path, Donnie headed out of the gates to watch the older man leave, an uneasy feeling in his gut… his gut feeling was right.

 

“Look!” he cried out, as the rest of his family came running, “There it is again!”

 

Raph nodded in agreement, “It’s the ghost!”

 

“Following Grandfather!”

 

Yoshi scanned the area, frowning when he saw nothing. “What are you four talking about?!” he exclaimed in confusion

 

Leonardo turned to his Father, “We see a ghost, we really do! It’s not just our imagination!”

 

The twelve-year-old sounded very serious… maybe this wasn’t a joke?

 

“Yeah! He’s right there!” Raph cried out.

 

“Yeah!” Mikey agreed, “Can’t you see him?! He’s right there!”

 

Yoshi focused intently on the area, before shaking his head. “I can’t see anything boys… but I do sense something dark in the air.” He then went to follow his old Master, “Come, let us make sure that no harm befalls your Grandfather.”

 

………………………………………………………………………………..

 

They followed the Ancient One to a large, Japanese-style villa situated on the top of a smallish mountain. With Yoshi copying the movement made by the Ancient One, the large doors opened up and allowed them inside, just as jade doors closed up. 

 

The Ancient One must have gone through there.

 

“Children, what are you doing?” Yoshi hissed, as he watched the children press their ears up against the jade doors, “Children?!”

 

“Shhhh…” Raphael hissed, frowning at the doors, “… they’re too thick, I can’t hear a thing!” He then turned to Mikey, “Can’t you shift into something with better hearing?”

 

Mikey nodded, easily shifting into a fluffy Labrador and shuffling closer to the door. After a couple of minutes, he shifted back and shook his head. “Raph’s right, the doors are too thick… I heard them mention something about a shredder, but nothing else.”

 

Before Yoshi could say anything, or before the children could move away from the door, the jade doors opened up and the four fell forwards at the Ancient One’s feet.

 

“What are you doing here?!” the Ancient One asked.

 

Yoshi stepped forwards, an apologetic smile on his face. “The children say that they have seen a phantom following you. The same ghost they encountered at your home…. We followed to make sure that you would come to no harm.”

 

As Yoshi was explaining this, Raph twisted around and gasped in shock. “There it goes now!” he yelled, prompting everyone else to glance in that direction.

 

“I see nothing!” Exclaimed the Ancient One.

 

Yoshi frowned, “Nor do i… but there is a presence in the air. Something is not right.”

 

“He’s heading for that house over there!” Raphael announced, pointing at a building that was next to a large, dragon-like structure containing a fireplace.

 

The Ancient One frowned, “The Pool of Sorrow… the artefacts! Curse me for a donkey’s arseh- “

 

“- Master!”

 

“Come on!” The Ancient One waddled forwards, “We must make haste! Hurry!”

 

As he shot forwards with remarkable speed, the children were quick to follow, as Yoshi groaned and kept his eyes on them. When they walked into the building, they quickly realised that the supposed ‘pool of sorrow’ had been emptied and led down into a separate chamber.

 

Racing down, Leo immediately spotted the ghost. “There he is!”

 

“Yeah!” agreed Donnie, “Right next to the- “ His face grew pale, instantly struck by the familiar looking gloves on the pedestal… much like the ones used to murder his mother and Splinter all those years ago, “- right next to the knifed gauntlet.”

 

The Ancient One shook his head, “I still see nothing!”

 

Raph growled in frustration, “But his bony butt is right there!”

 

Unbeknownst to the adults, the skeletal ghost was growling at the children. “You will pay for your interference brats!”

 

Red light swirled all around it as the figure fell to its knees, screeching as it transformed into a hideous winged beast, with three, serpentine heads that hissed at the children. When it roared at the children, the room they were in began to shake, pieces of rubble falling from the ceiling.

 

“Look out!” yelled Mikey.

 

Yoshi and the Ancient One glanced around, with Yoshi shaking his head in shock. “But we don’t see anything!”

 

The left head of the creature suddenly shot forwards and grabbed Yoshi by his tunic, dragging the older man towards it as the children screamed in fear and shock.

 

“DAD!”

 

The right head then darted out and grabbed the Ancient One, causing the same reaction.

 

“He’s got them both!” Donnie cried out

 

“I warned you, you meddlesome brats!” the creature hissed, seemingly enjoying the cries of his victims and the children’s fear, “Watch as your Masters’ perish!”

 

“NO!”

 

“Their suffering will be great!” He slammed Yoshi and the Ancient One into the marble ground, cracking it with the force, “But I promise, yours will be greater!”

 

As his younger brothers cried out, Leo straightened up, shaking himself out before turning to them. “C’mon…” he whispered, “… we’re mutant ninjas! We can stop this!” He turned to the twins, “Raph, there’s tons of rubble around, use it for your explosions! Mikey, shift into something big whilst I make some fog… we’re the distraction!” He then turned to Donnie, “Donnie…. Give him a little shock.” 

 

The three brothers nodded in determination as a thick fog started to fill the room, causing the creature to glance around in confusion.

 

As it did so, Mikey shifted into a rhino, waiting until his twin gathered up enough of the rubble and clambered onto his back.

 

“Go!” Raph ordered, charging several of the rocks and chucking them at the creature… well, in the creature’s general direction. As the fog continued to thicken, the only thing that could really be seen was the light given off by Raph’s explosions.

 

“You dare!” the creature hissed.

 

Meanwhile, Donnie was clearly deep in thought, causing Leo to scowl in frustration. “Donnie, shock him! Didn’t you hear me?!”

 

“Ssssh!” the eight-year-old glared at his brother, “I’m trying to figure out where best to aim! There must be a reason why Daddy and Grandfather can’t see him!”

 

“Just hit him!”

 

“No!” Donnie thought to himself for a few more minutes, before coming to a realisation and beaming, “Got it… Leo, can you thin the fog just a little?”

 

“Why?!”

 

“Just do it!”

 

Leo frowned, before rolling his eyes and doing as he was told. Once the fog was thin enough for them to see the creature partially, Donnie clenched his fists, electricity crackling all around them as every hair on his head stood up on end.

 

Once he’d gathered up enough power, he carefully aimed at the medallion hanging around the creatures’ neck and fired a bolt of electricity straight at it. The bolt landed directly in the middle of the medallion, shattering the glass and causing red beams of light to swirl around the creature.

 

“What?!” it hissed, releasing its grip on the two Masters’ before yelping as the medallion exploded, sending it flying back into the wall… slowly shimmering into existence and the fog cleared.

 

The Ancient One smirked at the sight of the creature, “Well lookie what I see…” he then turned to Donnie and smiled, “… nice shot little one.”

 

Donnie smiled shyly, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

 

“Now that the playing field has been levelled phantom…” The Ancient One walked up to the creature, smirking as he went, “… let’s see just how scary you really are!”

 

The creature attempted to lunge at the Ancient One, only for the older man to move at an astonishing speed (one that didn’t seem possible for his size), kicking the creature into the wall. Once it was stunned, Yoshi leapt into the air and used a perfect blow to remove one of the skeletal figure’s wings.

 

When one of the heads lunged for him, Yoshi grabbed a stick in order to defend himself from the sharp teeth. Growling, he yanked the head and neck bones away from the main body, spinning around and shattering it into tiny pieces.

 

Meanwhile, one of the other heads was trying to catch the Ancient One, who simply darted nimbly out of the way, before leaping into the air and landing directly on the skull, smashing it into the marble floor.

 

With the loss of its’ two heads, the creature faded back into its’ original form, prompting the children to cheer.

 

“Ancient One…” Yoshi turned to his father-in-law, “… look!”

 

“His magic is failing! Let’s end this!”

 

The pair raced forwards, each grabbing a skeletal arm and forcing the creature to its’ knees.

 

“You are finished!” Yoshi growled, ripping an arm out of its socket as the Ancient One did the same with the other arm.

 

With a sharp kick, they propelled the creature onto the tomb that was in the centre of the room. When it pushed itself upright, the two Masters’ came flying at it kicking it across the room and cracking the main skull.

 

Its’ eyes rolled back into the skull as it collapsed to the ground, twitching slightly before falling completely still.

 

“YES!” cheered Mikey, leading the race back to Master Splinter, “Go Father!”

 

“You destroyed him!” Raph whooped, throwing one more explosive pebble at the fallen creature

 

“You’re the best!” Mikey.

 

“Way to go Dad!” Leo

 

“Sweet moves!” Donnie

 

“Well done young one!”

 

At this new voice, they all turned their attention to the entrance, where three people were floating in the air and staring at the remains of the creature.

 

“You have crushed a bone demon.”

 

The Ancient One stepped forwards and gestured at Yoshi. “Only with the help of Yoshi-san and his children.”

 

“We sensed the Foot Mystics would strike to retrieve the artefacts…” One of the floating men said, his eyes glowing blue, “… but we did not know when. Their cunning is boundless.”

 

“We owe you our thanks Hamato Yoshi… you and your mutant children.” The other man said.

 

As the children examined the bone creature, the Ancient One turned to the strangers. “Masters, how is it that the children could see the demon, but we could not?”

 

This time, the woman spoke up. “The amulet it wore blinded the wise and world-weary. Only those who are pure of heart, children, were immune to its powers.”

 

“Still…” mused the second man, “… not all children would have been able to resist its’ power. These four are unique. We will have to watch them, for the future.”

 

Yoshi glanced over at his sons, shaking his head when he watched as Raph stomped on the skeleton, laughing as some of the dust got into Mikey’s face.

 

“However, at present, their knowledge of this night is a danger to them… and to us.” The first man’s eyes began to glow. “Their minds must be relieved of these memories.”

 

Yoshi winced, but nodded in agreement, “I suppose.”

 

The first man waved his hand, and the four children fell to the ground in a dead slump. “They will remember nothing of these events. All they will remember is that they came to this country to honour their Mother. Nothing more.”

 

The second man then opened up a portal that seemed to lead straight to the underground home of Yoshi and his children.

 

“Incredible…” Yoshi exclaimed in surprise, as his sons slowly began to wake up.

 

Before he could leave however, the Ancient One spoke up. “Yoshi, before you leave…” he pulled four bejewelled bracelets out of his pocket, “I have something for my grandchildren.”

 

“What do they- “

 

“They’ll help with their powers. The jewels will make sure of that.” He walked over to Leo and placed a bracelet with a sapphire jewel on his wrist, “The sapphire will heighten his control over the weather, especially the ones attributed to negative emotions.”

 

He placed a bracelet with a ruby jewel on Raph’s wrist, “The ruby suits Raphael perfectly, it is passionate and will help keep his energy levels up when using his powers. He won’t tire out as quickly when charging large objects.”

 

A Hessonite jewelled bracelet was placed on Mikey’s wrist, “The hessonite bracelet will expand and contract along with Michelangelo as he shape-shifts, and it will allow him to keep his mind intact. No losing himself to the animal instinct.”

 

Finally, an amethyst bejewelled bracelet was placed on Donnie’s wrist. “This will store electricity for him. Keeping it charged, he’ll have a backup source for those tricky situations.”

 

Yoshi beamed at his father-in-law, “Thank you, thank you, thank- “

 

“- Enough foolishness!” The lady growled, “Enter the portal!”

 

The children were easily led through the portal as the Ancient One beamed, “Goodbye children, goodbye Yoshi-san… take care of yourselves.”


	18. Vision

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

“Dad!”

 

Yoshi groaned under his breath, rolling onto his other side.

 

“DAD!”

 

“Alright, alright…” Yoshi muttered under his breath, pushing himself to a standing position and heading out of his room, “… Michelangelo? Michelangelo, where are you?”

 

“In the training room!”

 

Yoshi frowned, heading in that direction (closely followed by his other sons as Mikey’s cries had woken them as well). When he entered the training room, he took a step back in shock.

 

On the equipment that was used to increase a students’ flexibility, Mikey was stuck in the splits position, a sheepish look on his face.

 

“I just thought I’d start training early today!” Mikey exclaimed, patting his leg before wriggling slightly.

 

“… You’re stuck aren’t you Michelangelo?”

 

Mikey shook his head frantically, stammering nervously, “Stuck, wha- no no…. I’m not- “He stopped, sighed and shook his head, “- I’m stuck.”

 

Leonardo walked over to help his brother, lifting him up and away from the equipment and placing him back on his feet.

 

“You cannot master the split double kick in one-night Michelangelo….” Yoshi scolded his son, “… it takes years to develop your flexibility, and years to perfect the move. Leonardo has only just started learning it himself.”

 

Mikey winced, “But I just thought… I just wanted to- “

 

“- injure yourself?”

 

Mikey sighed, nodding in understanding and shuffling nervously from side to side. “No Daddy.”

 

Yoshi stared at the ten (almost eleven) year old, before sighing and turning his attention to the other boys. “Well… I think we could start training early, right boys?”

 

The other three grumbled slightly, but nodded anyway, heading towards the training mat to start their katas.

 

………………………………………….

 

“Michelangelo! Concentrate!” Yoshi ordered, starting to come to the end of his patience with the younger of his twins, “Right arm a little higher!”

 

Mikey begrudgingly raised his arm, eyes not moving from the front of the class, not even to acknowledge the concerned looks his brothers were giving him.

 

The class continued on in much of the same way, and Yoshi lost count of how many times he had to scold Michelangelo for not paying attention.

 

After what seemed like hours, the training came to an end and his sons all bowed, before rushing off to grab some breakfast before their morning lessons started.

 

“Michelangelo…. Stay behind please.”

 

Mikey hesitated for a brief moment, before slowly turning around and heading back to his Father, kneeling in front of him.

 

“… What’s wrong my son?”

 

Mikey shrugged, remaining silent… most unlike him.

 

“Michelangelo…. I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s wrong.”

 

There was a brief moment of silence, before Mikey seemed to collapse in on himself. “Remember when Mummy used to have those dreams?”

 

Ah yes, Tang Shen was often plagued with dreams…. Some that could often be referred to as visions.

 

“You… believe you had a vision?”

 

Mikey nodded shakily, tears building up in his eyes. “I-I-I- “

 

“- You need to calm down.” Yoshi shuffled closer and pulled his son into a hug, “Match my breathing and explain everything to me, alright?”

 

It took a few minutes, but eventually Mikey calmed down enough for him to force a sentence out.

 

“There was red smoke everywhere…” he gasped, “… Y-you were yelling in pain, I know it was you! I saw Leo fall through a window, a much older Leo, but it was Leo! Raphie was yelling and swearing, really bad words and Donnie…” Mikey shook his head, “… He was screaming, there was something on his head and he was screaming.”

 

It definitely sounded liked a vision… a very distressing one judging by his son’s shaky voice and the tears now making their way down his cheeks.

 

Yoshi pulled his son even closer to him, practically onto his lap, wrapping his arms around him and rocking back and forth. “Sssh, sssh, ssh…” he whispered, running his finger’s through Mikey’s orange hair, “… I know it seems scary now, but nothing is set in stone. Your vision may or may not come to pass, and when it does, I have every confidence that you and your brothers will be ready for it.”

 

“Y-You really think so?”

 

Yoshi gently encouraged his son to look him in the eye, “I know so my son, and I have every faith that you will be strong enough.”

 

“…. And that you’ll be there?”

 

Yoshi hesitated at that… he knew he wouldn’t be around forever, but hopefully he would be around long enough for his sons to grow up, long enough for them to be able to take care of themselves.

 

“I will…. Be here as long as you need me.” He eventually sighed, pulling his son closer, “For you and your brothers.”

 

“Promise.”

 

“I promise Michelangelo…. I promise.”


	19. Winning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

“What on Earth are you doing my son?”

 

Nine-year-old Donnie barely glanced up from his work, large goggle on his face as he worked on a long, metal staff, tweezers prying about with wires inside the staff.

 

“Donatello?”

 

His full name seemed to startle Donnie out of his thoughts, pulling away from the invention, before turning his attention to his Father, pulling the goggle away from his face and moving them up to his forehead.

 

“Sorry…” he beamed at Yoshi, and gestured at his latest invention, “… I was lost in thought. What d’ya think?”

 

Yoshi stared at the staff, before glancing back at his son and raising an eyebrow. “And… what exactly is it?”

 

Holding up his hand, Donnie put all the wires back into place and shut the small compartment. He then got to his feet and grabbed the staff, pressing a button which caused parts of it to light up with a brilliant, purple glow.

 

“It’s an electrical bo staff.” Donnie announced, “It’s a light metal that I found during our last dumpster trip. I’ve spent months hollowing out the inside and filling it with the electrical components that it needs to carry and hold a charge. The button switches it on and helps me channel the electricity, and if someone who isn’t me grabs it, it’ll give them a nasty shock.”

 

He paused after that, brow furrowed in thought. “I’ll need to work a bit on that aspect, but it’ll definitely help me aim and control the electricity.”

 

Yoshi couldn’t help but smile at his youngest’s enthusiasm, “A useful component for if you ever have to go up against any enemies…. But for now, we have morning training, which you are late to.”

 

Guiltily glancing at the clock, Donnie winced, before bowing in apology and racing towards the dojo, leaving his metal staff behind.

 

“Sorry Dad!”

 

Yoshi watched him leave fondly, shaking his head in exasperation, before following him.

 

“Never change Donatello… never change.”

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………

 

“And finish!”

 

Yoshi nodded in approval as the four children finished their kata training perfectly.

 

“Excellent…. Now for our sparring today, I am willing to let you all choose your own weapons. You all know which your best choices and your worst choices are…. So, choose wisely.”

 

The children were all clearly thrilled, and raced over to the training cabinet, picking out their choices.

 

Yoshi wasn’t surprised with what he saw.

 

Leo picked out the double katana, Raph picked the pair of sai, Micky picked the nunchucks and Donnie… well, he picked the bo staff unsurprisingly.

 

“Alright….” Yoshi thought to himself for a few moments, before gesturing at the twins, “… Michelangelo and Raphael will spar together, as will Leonardo and Donatello.”

 

It might have seemed like a strange choice, to pair up the thirteen-year-old Leonardo and nine-year-old Donatello, but as Leo was more experienced, it challenged Donnie a bit more, encouraging him to go on the offensive a bit more.

 

Yoshi didn’t mind that his youngest was a pacifist. It was an admirable quality, however, with the ever-looming threat of his former friend, he knew that it was a realistic one. His children had to know how to defend themselves.

 

………………………………………………………………………………….

 

The match between Raph and Mikey was predictable. Mikey would tease and annoy his older twin, leading to Raph losing his temper and his attacks growing sloppy with the rising anger. All it took was one wrong move, and Mikey had pinned Raph to the ground.

 

“Enough!” Yoshi called an end to the fight, slamming his stick on the ground, “Excellent work Michelangelo. Raphael, you need to learn to control your temper, but excellent use of your strength aside from that.”

 

He then gestured at Leo and Donnie, “Your turn boys.”

 

The pair stood on opposite sides of the training mat, bowing at one another, before waiting for the signal.

 

Yoshi slammed his stick on the ground and the match began.

 

Leo immediately went on the offensive, clearly wanting to end this quickly…. But he was in for a shock. 

 

When he swiped at his youngest brother, Donnie was quick to defend himself, blocking the four swipes that were aimed at him, before dipping down and kicking Leo’s feet out from under him.

 

“Go Donnie!” Raph cheered, a wicked smirk on his face as Leo lunged forwards, swiping down only for Donnie to swiftly dart to one side and lightly hit Leo on the back… almost in a teasing manner as he darted away.

 

Yoshi could only watch, refraining from saying anything as he watched his two son’s battle it out. After the first two embarrassing hits, Leo started to up his gain, going harder on the offense. His attacks were faster and harder, clearly determined to win this sparring match.

 

Donnie was pushed back against the wall, his own movements growing frantic. He yelped when Leo’s training sword came down hard against his arm, darting to one side in order to give himself a slight reprieve, rubbing his arm and hissing at the ache.

 

Leo didn’t give him much time.

 

The thirteen-year-old raced towards his youngest brother, training katana at the ready as he slashed at Donnie several times, pushing Donnie further and further back.

 

“Aw…” Mikey grumbled, “… just when it was getting interesting.”

 

The twins seemed to have reached a conclusion in their minds, but Yoshi was still keeping an open mind…. This was the most impressive show Donnie had ever put on.

 

And he was right to hold back judgement.

 

With one more final push on his part, Donnie ducked down, using his staff to knock Leo’s feet out from under him, before placing his staff against his oldest brother’s neck.

 

“Yameru!” Yoshi slammed his stick down, a proud smile on his face, “Congratulations Donatello, I think the bo staff is perfect for you.”

 

Donnie still seemed to be in shock as he stared down at his brother… although, he wasn’t as bad as Leo, who looked like he was seconds from passing out.

 

“Donatello…” Yoshi chuckled, “… you can step away now. The match is over.”

 

Stunned, Donnie took a step back, bowing to Leo (who was slowly pushing himself to his feet) and turning to beam at his Father.

 

“Way to go Donnie!” Mikey and Raph cheered, racing over and gently pulling their youngest brother into a hug (knowing that rough movements usually cause Donnie to freeze up), “That was awesome!”

 

Donnie chuckled nervously, smiling shyly as Mikey ad Raphael continued to gush about the match whilst Yoshi chuckled fondly.

 

Leo however, was standing to one side, frowning at the proceedings. 

 

In fact, he looked a little bit embarrassed.

 

“Leonardo…” Yoshi gently called out, “… may I have a word please?”

 

He led his oldest into his own room, intending to give him a reassuring speech about how even the greatest ninjutsu masters lost at times, and it was nothing to be ashamed of. Not everything was about winning.

 

However, when he turned back around to face Leo, he was shocked to see the teen kneeling on the floor, an embarrassed flush on his face. “I’m sorry I lost Father…” Leo desperately blurted out, “… I promise, it will never happen again.”

 

Yoshi frowned, “Is that really why you think I brought you in here?”

 

“I-I- “

 

“I will never be ashamed at you for losing Leonardo…” Yoshi scolded, “… But I am slightly disappointed in you for believing that you should be ashamed for losing.”

 

“But it was to Donnie!”

 

“Leonardo!”

 

Leo winced at his Father’s tone, knowing that he’d pushed the line.

 

“Losing to your younger brother is nothing to be ashamed of. Donnie has clearly been practicing with the bo staff and did very well. You should be congratulating him, not feeling sorry for yourself.”

 

Knowing that his son was now feeling very, very sorry for himself, Yoshi lowered his tone. “You fought well and that is nothing to be ashamed of…. But you need to apologise to Donatello. He looks up to you, you know.”

 

“I know…” Leo sighed wearily, “… I will go and say sorry.”

 

“Thank you, my son.”

 

Yoshi watched from the side-lines as Leo made his way over to Donnie, a nervous look on his face.

 

“Donnie?”

 

Donnie span around and smiled shyly at Leo, shuffling from side to side as Leo took a deep breath and held out a hand.

 

“Good match Donnie.”

 

The shy smile transformed into a beaming grin and Donnie eagerly grabbed the hand and shook it. “Thanks Leo… you wanna see my new bo-staff? Mikey and Raph want to, but I said we had to wait and ask you!”

 

Leo looked slightly stunned, but nodded, following his brothers out of the dojo and towards Donnie’s lab…. All of them leaving their weapons on the ground.

 

“Boys…” Yoshi sighed under his breath, as he went to put the weapons away, “… when will they learn.”


	20. Paintball

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Raphie! Raphie!”

 

Raph frowned at the sound of his twin’s voice nearby, dropping the ripped and tattered boxing gloves and heading over. 

 

With the thirteen-year-old Leo in charge, the four brothers were permitted to head up to the surface, specifically focusing on the junkyard that was near the south exit.

 

It was amazing what the people of New York threw away.

 

When he made his way over to his brother, he frowned at the box that Mikey was hovering over.

 

“Look at these!”

 

Mikey pulled out a largish black gun, giggling as he pretended to fire at the nearby wall. “Check these out! We can be like James Bond!”

 

Similarly as thrilled, Raph pulled out a gun of his own and beamed in delight. “These are awesome!”

 

“We could play Mission Impossible! Or-or-or- “

 

“Raph! Mikey!” Leo suddenly appeared over a pile of junk, closely followed by Donnie (who was carrying as much scrap and computer parts as he could), “What are you doing?”

 

He then spotted the guns and took a step back. “Put them back!” he hissed angrily, “You know how Dad feels about guns, but them back!”

 

“We’re not actually going to fire them…” Raph rolled his eyes, “… chill out!”

 

“It doesn’t matter! Put them back!”

 

“But Leo- “

 

“- Now Mikey!”

 

As his three older brothers started to bicker amongst themselves, Donnie made his way over to the box of guns, noticing something at the bottom of the box. When he pulled it out, he quickly realised what they were.

 

“Paintball guns.”

 

Everyone stopped arguing and turned to look at Donnie, who was holding a smaller box in his hand, a small box full of multicoloured, tiny balls.

 

“They’re paintball guns. They’ll never fire real bullets, only these…. I have heard that they hurt a lot though.”

 

The other three stared at the pellets for a moment, before Leo turned back to the twins. “No…. we’re still not taking them with us.”

 

…………………………………………………………………….

 

Needless to say, they did end up taking the paintball guns and all the equipment home, sneaking it into Raph’s room in order to avoid their Father from seeing it.

 

When the older man went out to buy some groceries (being undercover was easier without the boys), Raph brought the guns back out.

 

“Alright…” the eleven-year-old rubbed his hands together in glee, “… who fancies a game.”

 

Mikey immediately put his hands up, and even Leo did reluctantly (even though it was more likely he was only agreeing in order to keep an eye on them)… but Donnie didn’t seem sure.

 

“I was serious about it hurting!” he begged, “You should read the statistics!”

 

“Stop being a wuss Donnie!”

 

Donnie didn’t even flinch at Raph’s sneer, instead crossing his arms and standing his ground. “You guys can play it if you want, but we don’t have the proper safety equipment, so no thank you.”

 

As Mikey and Raph started to boo and jeer, Donnie stormed away towards his lab, closing the door behind him and turning his thoughts to more important things.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

“Okay, so that would equal negative 2 times the square root of twenty-two squared times four hundred and thirteen, then divided by thirty-three squared minus forty-three plus 8.” 

 

As Donnie muttered to himself, scribbling on the scraps of paper surrounding his second-hand laptop, he failed to notice the door to his lab slide open.

 

He did feel the paint pellet hit him in the back however, forcing the breath out of him as he gasped in shock.

 

“Got you!” Mikey cried out triumphantly… until he noticed that Donnie was having trouble breathing. “Donnie?”

 

Donnie was clearly panicking, the shock of the pellet hitting his back still reverberating through his body.

 

“Donnie! Donnie!”

 

The other two came rushing into the room, with Leo muttering a Japanese curse under his breath when he saw the look on his youngest brother’s face. “Donnie, Donnie you need to breath!”

 

He helped Donnie stand up, gently rubbing the young boys back.

 

Donnie was still wheezing though.

 

“We are in so much shitting trouble…” Raph groaned as he watched Donnie’s face start to turn red with the effort of trying to breathe, “… Dad is actually going to kill us.”

 

Mikey was starting to panic. “No, he won’t! Donnie will cover for us, won’t you Donnie?”

 

*wheeze*

 

“Okay…. Maybe Dad will be a little bit mad?”

 

Now it was Leo’s turn to panic. “A little?!” he exclaimed, “Donnie is hurt, because Mikey shot him in the back, with a paintball gun that we’re not even meant to have because our Dad hates guns. And this was all done when he was out because we knew how mad he would be if he ever found out! And Donnie knew this, which is why he tried to stop us!”

 

“Interesting.”

 

The three older boys span around at the sound of their Father’s voice, guilt plastered all over their faces.

 

Yoshi however, didn’t focus on them…. He went straight over to Donnie, who was slowly starting to recover. “Come on my son...” he whispered, helping Donnie to his feet, “… Let’s get you to your room.”

 

Just before he left the room, he twisted back to frown at his other sons. “I want to see you three in the dojo. You will be doing backflips off the back wall until I return. Am I understood?”

 

At their Father’s tone, the older three nodded quickly and ran towards the dojo, dropping the paintball guns as they went.

 

“Come on Donatello…” Yoshi changed his tone to something more soothing as he lifted Donnie into his arms and gently carried him to his room, placing him on the bed, “… remove your t-shirt and let’s have a look at the damage.”

 

Donnie nodded, gently pulling off his shirt (wincing all the way) and wrapping his arms around himself as the frigid air of the sewer went straight to his bones. 

 

Heading around to his son’s back, Yoshi hissed in sympathy. A huge, red welt was already starting to form on his youngest’s back and judging by how red and slightly swollen it was, the bruise would be spectacular.

 

“Hmmmm….” Yoshi gently ran his fingers along the edge of the wound, “… alright, I think we need to put some cream on this and wrap it up, just to make sure, alright?”

 

Donnie nodded silently, watching as his Father nipped out of the room, probably to fetch the firs aid kit, before making his way back in.

 

Once it was treated and wrapped up, Yoshi encouraged his son to lie down on his bed, running his fingers through the purple hair. “Are you alright Donatello?”

 

“… Mikey shot me…” the youngest whispered, his voice tinged in pain, “I told him paintball injuries hurt, and he still shot… in the back. I told him I didn’t want to play!”

 

Seeing that his son was clearly still panicked, the sensation of not being able to breath properly having taken its toll, Yoshi gently pulled the young boy closer, rocking back and forth in an attempt to soothe his youngest.

 

With the stress of being hit and the calming motion of the rocking, it was no surprise that Donnie soon fell asleep, not even stirring when his Dad gently lay him down on the bed and covered him up, removing Donnie’s goggles as he went.

 

Now to deal with his other boys.

 

……………………………………………………………………………

 

“The bruise on your brother’s back is quite spectacular.”

 

The other boys winced at the annoyed tone in the doorway, with Mikey growing pale at the knowledge that he’d hurt his brother.

 

“I didn’t think I would have to explain why I don’t like guns…” Yoshi sighed, striding into the room, a disappointed look on his face, “… I believed you would all be mature enough to listen to my concerns and respect them.”

 

“Dad, we- “

 

“- I have never been so disappointed. Not only have you disregarded my feelings about guns, but you have hurt your brother in the process.”

 

Leo and Mikey looked especially disheartened by this, eyes falling to the ground in shame. Raph looked slightly less ashamed but remained silent anyway.

 

“You will get rid of those guns immediately…” he ordered, “… and then, after you finish doing fifty more backflips, because clearly you all have enough energy to start paintball gun fights, you will all write at least two pages each as an apology letter for your brother… am I understood?”

 

“Hai Father.”

 

“Good…” as he turned to leave, he suddenly noticed that there was something else wrong with the situation.

 

Paint… there was paint all over his living room.

 

“AND YOU CAN CLEAN THIS UP AS WELL!”


	21. Tang-Shen's lullaby

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“I think he likes my lullaby.”

 

Yoshi glanced up from his book to smile at his heavily pregnant wife, who was tapping lightly on her protruding mid-section. “That’s not a surprise my moon, all of our sons have loved your lullaby.”

 

“Yes, but he was so quiet! Not like Leo, who was always moving or the twins who seemed to fight with each other….” Tang-Shen sighed in relief, “… I think this is the most he’s ever moved.”

 

Reaching over, Yoshi placed his own hand on his wife’s mid-section just as she started singing again.

 

“Loola-Bye, oh, Loola Bye   
My lovely Loola moon   
Tip-toe by where my babies lie   
In your tiny silver shoon 

Will you guard, will you keep   
Will you watch over please   
My wee ones, my lambkins   
My sweet chick-a-chick-a-dees   
Loola-Bye, oh, Loola-Bye... In your tiny silver shoon.”

 

Yoshi couldn’t help but beam as he felt his fourth child squirming and kicking as Tang-Shen sang.

 

And then he woke up.

 

Grief never truly passed… it only got easier.

 

It was a motto he tried to live by every day, but after dreams like that, it was getting harder and harder.

 

“Father? Father?”

 

Fourteen-year-old Leo stood in the doorway, a concerned look on his face. 

 

“Are you alright?”

 

When his father remained silent, Leo stepped a little further into the room. “Father?”

 

“Yes Leonardo, I’m fine….” Knowing his voice was sounding a little snappy, Yoshi consciously lowered his tone, “… It was… a pleasant memory that I know I can never have again. In that sense, I suppose it becomes an unhappy memory.”

 

“Father I- “

 

“- Forget it… just forget it Leonardo.” Pushing himself to his feet, he silenced his son with a disapproving glare, “Enough… are you and your brothers ready for this morning’s training session?”

 

“Ummm, yeah, I think so.”

 

“Excellent…” Yoshi strode past his son and headed into the living room/kitchen area, “… then the four of you can prepare whilst I get changed into something more suitable.”

 

“…. Hai Sensai.”

 

…………………………………….

 

It seemed as though the entire day was determined to be difficult.

 

He couldn’t focus on the training sessions and ended up getting annoyed with himself… which of course, meant that he was getting annoyed with the boys.

 

Leo’s well-meaning help only caused him to snap.

 

Raph’s aggression caused him to send the twelve-year-old to the corner multiple times.

 

Mikey’s laugh grated on his nerves.

 

And Donnie… well every move or sound that Donnie made only seemed to make everything worse.

 

It was illogical, and he knew that… but he’d give anything to hear his wife sing that lullaby again.

 

“Enough!” he eventually called out, knowing that he was reaching the end of his tether, “This session is over! Hopefully by tomorrow, you will all have improved.”

 

As he stormed out of the dojo, he decided to ignore Raph’s sulky mutter from behind him.

 

“The only thing that needs improving is his attitude… who pissed in his green tea?”

 

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

The rest of the day passed in much the same way.

 

Every cup of tea that Leo made in good-will, was ignored and left to go cold.

 

He took Raph’s punching bag down when the sound of Raph’s anger got too much to bear.

 

Mikey was sent to his room several times for being too loud.

 

Donnie… well the ten-year-old seemed to realise that his Dad was in a foul mood and remained out of sight, and out of mind. Even his experiments were quieter.

 

Needless to say, by the time tea-time rolled around, everyone was on tenterhooks.

 

The silence at the table was almost unbearable, with the only sound being heard was cutlery chinking against the plates. 

 

It wasn’t a surprise when someone snapped.

 

What was a surprise, was who snapped.

 

“I can’t take this anymore….” Donnie growled, practically slamming his fork onto his plate and pushing himself away from the table, “… I hate this silence!”

 

“Donatello!” Yoshi snapped, “Sit back down!”

 

“No, I can’t!” Donnie gripped the side of his head, “It’s too quiet, everyone’s been to quiet, not talking or anything! It’s too loud in my head, I need a distraction!”

 

“Sit down and eat, that will be the distraction!”

 

“No!”

 

Leo, Raph and Mikey watched in alarm as their Father fumed in his seat, grip tightening on his fork.

 

“Go. To. Your. Room!” Yoshi ordered his youngest, “Distract yourself in there… and leave the food!”

 

Donnie raced off, a scowl on his face, leaving the table in tense silence once again.

 

“Eat your food boys…” Yoshi eventually sighed, “… I’m sure Donatello will calm down eventually.”

 

“Maybe I can give him my headph- “

 

“- Enough Michelangelo. If Donatello wants to act like that, then he doesn’t deserve anything.”

 

“But he’s getting stressed Father!” Leo blurted out, “Usually we pull his mind away from the sums and science and all that. Without it, his mind is racing, and he can’t calm it down.”

 

“Yeah! You can’t let him just sit in his room! He’ll go crazy!” agreed Raph, nodding furiously, “I know you’re mad, but- “

 

“- Raphie! Ssssshhhh!”

 

Yoshi frowned as his children all refused to look him in the eye, silently turning their attention back to their food.

 

It was too quiet…. In fact, it had been too quiet all day.

 

And it was all his fault.

 

“When you’ve finished, you boys can go and play…” he sighed wearily, “… and… hopefully tomorrow will be better.”

 

His children were silent as he pushed himself to his feet and headed towards Donnie’s room. When he reached the door, about to knock on it, he stopped in his tracks.

 

He knew that tune.

 

“Loola-Bye, oh, Loola Bye   
My lovely Loola moon   
Tip-toe by where my babies lie   
In your tiny silver shoon 

Will you guard, will you keep   
Will you watch over please   
My wee ones, my lambkins   
My sweet chick-a-chick-a-dees   
Loola-Bye, oh, Loola-Bye... In your tiny silver shoon”

 

Yoshi felt his heart practically stop in his throat, his breath catching as he slowly pushed the door open, his eyes focused on his youngest.

 

Donnie was seated on his bed, fingers twiddling together as he sang softly under his breath, tears streaming down his cheeks.

 

“… I didn’t you know remembered that lullaby.”

 

At his Dad’s voice, Donnie’s head shot up, his eyes wide in surprise. When he realised that his Dad seemed to have calmed down, he noticeably relaxed. “Mum used to sing that to me every night… it was calming, I liked it.”

 

“You were so young…” Yoshi went over to sit by his son, “… I didn’t think you’d remember it.”

 

“… Is it bad that I do?”

 

Silently, Yoshi pulled his son into a hug and sighed, “No… it’s not a bad thing my son…. In fact, I was just thinking about that lullaby this morning.”

 

At Donnie’s silence, Yoshi decided to continue. “I was dreaming about when your mother was pregnant with you… she used to sing that song all the time… and then I woke up and thought I wouldn’t hear it ever again.”

 

“… Is that why you were so…” Donnie stopped and made a frowny face, indicating anger and frustration.

 

“… Yes, and I cannot apologise enough for that…. You’ve never sang it before?”

 

“I thought it would remind you too much of Mum… we all did, that’s why we never sung it.” Donnie shrugged, “We didn’t think you’d miss it, or think we’d forgotten it.”

 

“It was no reason for me to take this frustration out on you and the boys….” Yoshi sighed, “… how do you think I should apologise to the other boys?”

 

“… Pizza?”

 

Yoshi chuckled and pulled his giggling youngest into a hug, “You boys and pizza… alright then, go and tell the others. We’ll order the usual.”

 

“Yes!” Donnie leapt to his feet and raced out the door, “LEO! RAPH! MIKEY! WE’RE GETTING PIZZA!”

 

Listening to his other boys’ whoop, Yoshi couldn’t help but smile in fondness…. This was how it should always have been.


	22. Education

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Dad… I’ve finished this one.”

 

Yoshi glanced up from where he was marking Raph’s homework, frowning as he saw the book that Donnie was holding up.

 

“… I only got that last week.”

 

Flushing guiltily, Donnie lowered the book, “I-I know… but it was really interesting and i- “

 

“- I understand Donatello.” Yoshi tried to be reassuring, but he knew that it would be some time before he could find another book that would suit Donnie’s IQ, and ordering new books was getting riskier and riskier, “How about I set a project for you to work on, until I get some new books, hmmm?”

 

Donnie was clearly relieved by this, nodding eagerly as Yoshi started to think desperately to himself, quickly realising that he now had to think up a project that would actually keep Donnie occupied long enough.

 

And this had happened so often, he didn’t think he had anymore projects to give the ten-year-old.

 

“For today…” he eventually decided, “… I think you may have some free time Donatello. Work on your inventions a little more and I will have something prepared for you tomorrow.”

 

Donnie’s face fell slightly at this, but nodded anyway, and raced towards his laboratory…. Ignoring how his other brothers grumbled at this.

 

“Why does he get free time and we don’t?” Raphael grumbled, scribbling out one of his answers, “I don’t want to do this!”

 

“You know why Raph…” Leo frowned, “… because Donnie is smarter than us.”

 

Even the fourteen-year-old sounded a little bitter about the fact, which only made Yoshi’s frown deepen. Raph had always been a little jealous of Donnie and how intelligent he was, even when his twin didn’t care in the slightest.

 

Leo however, had been quite accepting of Donnie… until the ten-year-old overtook him on every subject matter, working at almost a senior high school level.

 

“This little free time that Donatello has will not last long my sons. It is only until I get some more text books for him.”

 

“And when will that be?!” Raph exclaimed, “How long until he reads everything, and you can’t teach him anymore!”

 

Yoshi frowned at him but knew that his son had a point…. How long until Donnie surpassed the majority of the education levels. How long until he needed college level work? Or degree level?

 

That sort of work wasn’t easy to obtain, not without some serious funds.

 

It did pose a problem.

 

“We will manage. Now, I believe you have some maths to do?”

 

As the other boy got back to their work, Yoshi turned his thoughts back to his youngest… how would he keep Donnie’s interests occupied.

 

………………………………………………………………………………

 

Later on that day, leaving fourteen-year-old Leonardo in charge, Yoshi made his way to the surface and headed towards the nearest college, hoping that he could speak to someone.

 

“Excuse me…” he started, walking up to the help desk, “… I was hoping that I could speak to someone?”

 

“Can I ask who you want to speak to?” asked the receptionist, “Do you have an appointment?”

 

Yoshi shook his head and sighed wearily, “It’s concerning my son, I- “

 

“- do you wish to file a complaint?”

 

“No… I home-school my son you see, and he’s… well he’s starting to show signs of being a genius, and I was just wondering if there were any online programs we could sign up to? To keep him occupied?”

 

The receptionist frowned at him for a few seconds, before gesturing towards the chairs. “If you’d like to take a seat Mister…”

 

“… Splinter. Mister Splinter.”

 

“Mister Splinter, and I’ll see if the Dean is available to go over any options.”

 

“Thank you.” Yoshi walked over and took a seat on the uncomfortable leather chairs, taking a deep breath.

 

Maybe this would solve all these issues.

 

……………………………………………………………………………….

 

Less than half an hour later, a stern-looking woman emerged from a nearby and frowned at Yoshi.

 

“Mister Splinter?”

 

Yoshi got to his feet and bowed, smiling at the woman. “I presume you are the Dean of this establishment?”

 

“I am, which is why I am slightly suspicious of your intentions here Mister Splinter.”

 

“Oh?”

 

She frowned at him, “You home-school your son, and he just happens to be a genius. Therefore, you just have to have access to our elite courses, designed to challenge and strengthen the mind. Why should I believe you Mister Splinter?”

 

Yoshi nodded in understanding, knowing that this might happen as he reached into a bag and pulled out some of Donatello’s work that the child had produced over the last few years.

 

“Here is the work I’ve assigned to him… some of this could be given to seniors in high school and he’s done them all perfectly.”

 

The Dean took the work, scanning over the complicated equations, well-thought out arguments or history and English, detailed experiments, computer codes… and Yoshi could see she was impressed.

 

“Okay…” she eventually sighed, “… say I believe that your son did all this. Before I could even think of allowing you and he access to our online courses, I would need proof that he is ready for this. He would need to sit an entrance exam.”

 

Yoshi kept his expression neutral, as he nodded in acceptance. “As you wish… is there any chance we can book him in sooner rather later?”

 

She was a bit stunned by the statement, clearly expecting Yoshi to refuse, before nodding and gesturing at her receptionist. “Hayley will book you in as soon as possible, and I look forwards to meeting this little… genius.”

 

……………………………………………………..

 

“Are you sure about this Dad?” Donnie asked, trying to remain as still as possible as his Dad straightened out his tie, “What about remaining hidden and- “

 

“- and none of that matters.” Yoshi reassured him, “You need to keep your mind occupied and if venturing out there is the only way to do that, then that’s how it’ll be.”

 

Donnie was clearly still unsure but allowed his hand to be grabbed and led into the large building, where the Dean was waiting for them. She seemed surprised at Donnie’s vibrant purple hair and eyes, but took it in her stride and held her hand out to Yoshi.

 

“A delight to see you again Mister Splinter. I presume this is your son?”

 

Yoshi shook her hand and bowed, gently nudging his son forwards “Donatello, this is the Dean of the college. She is the one who has very kindly agreed to these examinations.”

 

“T-Thank you very much for agreeing to see me.” Donnie stammered, his nerves slowly starting to get the better of him as he bowed.

 

“You are very welcome… I must confess though, I didn’t imagine you to be so young. How old are you Donatello?”

 

“T-ten ma’am.”

 

“Ten…. Younger than I thought.”

 

Sensing that his son was starting to panic at the attention, Yoshi placed a gentle hand on the child’s shoulder. “It is as I described to you. My son is extremely smart and the learning materials that I provide are no longer suitable for him.”

 

The Dean scanned Donatello from head to tow, before sighing wearily. “Alright… we’ll give him the tests and see where to go from there. Is that suitable for you.”

 

“Of course.”

 

The pair were led to a small, secluded room further down the corridor, with a single desk in the middle.

 

“Donatello will do his tests here with teacher supervision….” The Dean explained, “… we have a school cafeteria where you may wait until he is finished. The time that he has been given is five hours. There will a break after his English and Maths test, and then he will spend the remaining hours on his three sciences.”

 

Before Yoshi could ask any questions, the Dean continued. “If he finishes before then, then he has the choice to do a history, geography or a computing test.”

 

Yoshi nodded in understanding, “That all sounds very reasonable…” He then knelt down to look his son in the eye, “…. Donatello, I need you to follow the Dean and listen to everything that she tells you… okay?”

 

Looking like he was ready to run, Donatello nodded shakily. “O-okay.”

 

“And remain calm…. Remember all of our meditation sessions.”

 

“Y-yeah…” Donatello took three deep breathes, visibly relaxing, “… Okay Dad.”

 

“Good boy.” Yoshi pulled him into a hug, before gently encouraging him to follow to Dean, “I’ll be out here when you’re done.”

 

Donnie nodded once, before taking another deep breath and following the Dean, casting one last glance at his Dad before the glass door slid shut.

 

“Just relax Yoshi…” Yoshi whispered to himself, as he walked in the direction of the cafeteria, “… he’ll be fine, you just need to relax.”

 

………………………………………………………………….

 

The five hours seemed to fly by, but Yoshi sensed that was because he spent all of that time worrying and panicking about how his youngest was doing.

 

Even when Donnie was due a break, they weren’t allowed to see one another, just in case Yoshi gave him a helping hand.

 

To be honest, Yoshi was starting to worry about his youngest…. Donnie had never really spent long hours without him or his brothers, what if he didn’t cope well.

 

He was only ten after all.

 

When the hours were up, Yoshi practically leapt to his feet when he spotted Donnie entering the room, kneeling down when his youngest came rushing over, practically leaping into his Dad’s arms in relief and excitement.

 

“You should have seen some of the sums they gave me Dad!” he exclaimed in glee, not even noticing the fond smile the Dean was giving him, “They were the ones that weren’t even covered in the last book you gave me! I really had to think about it!”

 

“That sounds thrilling my son…” Yoshi sighed warmly, sending the Dean a quick, warm smile, “… Did you enjoy the other exams as well?”

 

“Yeah! They let me do a history and a computing exam!”

 

“Both?” Yoshi glanced up at the Dean, who nodded at him, her own expression stating that she was as shocked as him, “My, that must have been fun?”

 

“Yeah!”

 

“Yes…” interrupted the Dean, “… it appears as though your son exceeded all expectations and managed to complete all his exams on time. Now, we will need some form of contact information, in order to let you know the results and how things will progress from there.”

 

“Ummm…” Yoshi started to panic internally. They had no phone, nothing that- “

 

“Dad has an email address!” Donnie suddenly piped up, “Would you like me to write it down for you?”

 

“Can your Father not do that?”

 

“He keeps forgetting it.”

 

Yoshi didn’t speak up, knowing that his son probably had a plan as he watched Donnie scribble down an email address and hand it to the Dean.

 

“Thank you very much…” She then turned to Yoshi, “… Hopefully, we’ll be in contact soon.”

 

……………………………………………………………………………………..

 

As they headed out of the college and to the nearest sewer entrance, Yoshi turned to his youngest.

 

“I didn’t realise we had access to a computer and email…” Yoshi frowned, eyebrows raising as Donnie flushed guiltily, “… this is a new development?”

 

Shuffling as they made their way into the sewers, Donnie shrugged, “I-I finished the computer I was building…. The wifi’s really weak so we can only really get email, but it’s something right?”

 

Yoshi knew he was beaming proudly, “That is most impressive my son… I am very proud of you.”

 

“Really… what if I failed the tests?”

 

“You built a computer from broken parts, practically from scratch, how could I not be proud of you… and I’ll be proud of you no matter what happens with these exams.”

 

Donnie beamed at this, a light flush on his face as he shuffled from side to side. “Thank you…” he whispered, before taking Yoshi’s hand and pulling him into the home, “… I’ll show how to access them!”

 

Leo, Raph and Mikey seemed consumed by whatever was on the old TV, barely noticing as the other two rushed past them and headed towards Donnie’s lab, where a rickety, old computer sat on the desk.

 

“Look, look, look!” Donnie powered up the computer (switching on a few fans in order to avoid over-heating), “Okay, once it loads up, we’ll log into your email and I’ll show you where you put your password, how to reply to them and- “

 

“- One step at a time my son. One step at a time.”

 

For the remainder of the afternoon, Donnie showed his Dad all that he could do on the computer… which wasn’t much at the moment.

 

But it was enough.

 

Needless to say, Donnie passed all his exams with flying colours.


	23. Punnett Square

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest, because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.  
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.  
“Smile!”

 

Leo glanced up from his history book and winced as a bright flash of light practically blinded him, “Donnie, what the- “

 

“Now turn to the side!”

 

Whilst he was stunned, Leo did as he was told as another flash filled the dark area.

 

“Thanks Leo!”

 

“Donnie, wait!”

 

But it was too late…. Donnie had already raced out of the room.

 

It probably wasn’t important anyway.

 

………………………………………………………………………………

 

“Donnie, I swear to God, if you don’t stop taking pictures of me- “

 

The eleven-year-old simply dodged out of the way of the thirteen-year-old, darting behind the punching bag and rolling his eyes. “It’s for science Raphie! Don’t you want to help with my science work?”

 

“No! Piss off!”

 

“Fine, fine, fine!” Donnie raced away, glancing at the camera and smirking, “I have what I need anyway.”

 

……………………………………………………………………

 

“What d’ya think Donnie? Next top model?”

 

Donnie laughed as his last brother posed and pouted towards the camera, “You’re a natural!”

 

A few more photos were taken, before Donnie called an end to it and beamed at his brother. “Thanks Mikey!”

 

“Hey, what are you- “

 

“- see you later!”

 

Mikey frowned, watching as his baby brother rushed away, his mind already on other things.

 

“I just wanted to know what you were doing.”

 

………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

Yoshi frowned when he walked into his room, hoping to grab a book for an afternoon of quiet reading, only to find Donatello on the bed, photo album open as he slowly removed several old photos of Tang Shen.

 

“My son… what are you doing?”

 

Donnie glanced up guilty, wincing as Yoshi frowned at him. “I-I just need a few photos for a science project.”

 

“And you didn’t think to ask me for some, instead of sneaking in here?”

 

Another guilty wince.

 

“I-I-I- “

 

“- You are more than welcome to take them, so long as they are kept in good condition and returned as soon as possible. Am I understood?”

 

Donnie nodded eagerly, before pulling out his camera (some old thing that he found in the local skip and fixed up), “Can I take some photos of you as well?”

 

“Of course my son, but why- “

 

Yoshi stopped in his tracks as there were several bright flashes from all angles, blinking the white dots out of his vision just in time to see his youngest race out of the room.

 

“Thanks Dad!”

 

It all happened so fast, and Yoshi found himself stunned for a few seconds. Eventually, he dismissed it as ‘one of those Donnie things’ and went to put the photo album away, pushing the strange behaviour out of his mind.

 

………………………………………………………………….

 

The rest of the day passed by without incident, with barely any sign of Donnie… which wasn’t a problem until dinner-time.

 

“Have you boys seen your brother recently?” Yoshi frowned as he watched the other three settle down, seconds away from diving into their food.

 

Leo shook his head respectfully, “No Father… the last time I saw him, he was taking photos of me.”

 

“Same…” Raph grunted, as Mikey nodded in agreement, “… some weird science project or something.”

 

Humming to himself, Yoshi nodded, knowing that that was the last time he had seen his son as well. “Well…” he rose to his feet, “… he knows what time dinner time is. If you three wouldn’t mind waiting for a few moments, I’m sure he just lost track of time.”

 

Ignoring how his other sons whispered about Donnie ‘being in trouble’, Yoshi strode towards Donnie’s room, knocking on the door.

 

No reply.

 

“Alright…” he muttered, heading towards the small lab, “… next stop.”

 

This time, when he knocked on the door there was the sound of movement from inside.

 

“Just a minute!” Donnie called out from inside the room, something metal clanging against the wall as footsteps raced over to the door, opening it slightly so that the child could peek out, “Hi Dad!”

 

“Donatello….” Yoshi tried to remain stern, “… it is dinner-time and you are still not at the table. Me and your brothers would like to eat at some point tonight.”

 

“Oh, Ummmm….” Donnie glanced back into the room and winced, “… you can eat with me?”

 

“Not an option my son… you will have to eat dinner with us.”

 

“But… my project!”

 

“It can wait my son… you need to eat.”

 

Eventually, Donnie agreed, locking the lab behind him and following his Dad.

 

Donnie had never locked the door before.

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………

 

“My sons, what are you doing?”

 

His three oldest glanced up from where they were staring at the laboratory door, before quickly refocusing on it again.

 

“Donnie’s not come out in ages!” Mikey announced, an uncharacteristic look of worry on his face, “What if he created the swamp monster or something and was eaten!”

 

“… No more horror movies for you Michelangelo.” Yoshi then took a deep breath, “Your brother is busy on a project. I’m sure once it’s done, he will come out and play. In the meantime, you need to give him some space.”

 

“But- “

 

“- No Leonardo. Donatello is busy and- “

 

Suddenly, there was a triumphant shout from inside the lab, and the door flung wide open to reveal a beaming Donatello.

 

“I’ve done it! I’ve done it!”

 

The other four stared at the eleven-year-old in shock, barely reacting as Donnie waved for them to follow him inside.

 

“Come and see! Come and see!”

 

Slowly, the others wandered into the room, with the three teens gasping at the sight of the north wall.

 

It was practically covered from top to bottom, in photos, pins and multi-coloured bits of string.

 

“What… what is all this my son?”

 

“My project! A punnett square!”

 

Ah yes… Yoshi had covered these with the others recently…. This was something on another scale entirely though.

 

“This is… rather extensive my son.”

 

“Well I have a lot of brothers… I’ll explain it to you.”

 

As the other three children glanced back at their Father in a pleading manner, Donnie went rushing over to the wall and grinned. “Okay, first I looked at the traits that we inherited from Dad. Now I know all of our eye colours are different due to the fairy/mutant genes, but we can still look at the shape of the eye.”

 

“Do we- “Raph stopped as Yoshi nudged him in the side, clearing his throat and nodding as Donnie continued, “- Yeah, that makes sense.”

 

“Exactly!” Donnie pointed to the photo of Yoshi, “Now Dad has relatively round eyes that are angled slightly downwards. Leo is the only one who inherited this particular trait, whereas me and the twins inherited Mum’s eye shape, which is slightly narrower, almost monolid in nature.”

 

“That’s the red string?” Yoshi questioned.

 

“Yeah! Now the yellow string, is all about face shape! Leo, Raphie and Mikey all got your basic bone structure Dad, but I got Mum’s, see?”

 

Then the green string, “Now here’s where it got interesting…. “


	24. Bracelets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, due to the fact that I’m still getting reviews for my fic TMN, I have decided (much like I did with my Joker Junior fic) to re-write my original story.
> 
>  
> 
> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

“She is the perfect example of what normal humanity has to offer…”

 

Donnie felt angry.

 

He’d never felt like this before.

 

The woman in front of him cowered, her hair shielding her face from view as she avoided looking him in the eye.

 

“… destroy her Donatello. You know she deserves it…. DO IT!”

 

And Donnie wanted to…. Oh God did he want to.

 

But then she turned to face him, and he saw the fear in her eyes.

 

“An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind.”

 

Mahatma Gandhi. One of his Father’s favourite quotes… and very apt.

 

He couldn’t kill this woman out of revenge.

 

“You’re wrong about them…” he heard himself say, “… they are everything you say they are, but so much more.”

 

“LIES!”

 

Bullets flew towards him but seemed to disintegrate before they ever reached him.

 

“They do not deserve your protection!”

 

“It’s not about deserving…” he heard himself chuckle, lightning dancing up and down his arms, collecting in gauntlets that were around his wrist, “… it’s about what you believe. And I believe in my family.”

 

“THEN I WILL DESTROY YOU!”

 

For what was quite a serious threat, Donnie felt remarkably calm, raising his arms into the air as lightning from the sky seemed to instantly shoot down towards him, causing his hair to stand on end with the sheer force of it.

 

Once he had collected all that he could, he leapt up into the air and slammed the gauntlets together, creating a large bolt of electricity that went straight through the other man, practically disintegrating him with the force of it.

 

And then Donnie woke up.

 

“Crap…” the eleven-year-old whispered when he saw all of the electricity dancing around the room, the electronics in his room dark after having been drained during his dream, “…. Crap, crap, crap.”

 

Moving into a seated position, legs hanging over the edge, he slowly started to concentrate, pushing the electricity back towards the electronics and inventions in the room.

 

“Come on…. Come on.”

 

And then the TV over-loaded and there was a popping sound.

 

“Crap.”

 

……………………………………..

 

“Did anyone go and check on Donatello this morning?” Yoshi asked wearily, scanning the kitchen, “Leonardo?”

 

Leo shook his head, a disappointed look on his face, “I can go and get him if you want?”

 

This was a new stage for his eldest… Leo had been trying to take charge of his brothers, trying to place himself in a leader’s shoes. Whilst Mikey and Donnie were usually alright and went along with it, Raphie often lashed out.

 

“That will not be necessary Leonardo. I’m sure he’s just a little distracted with one of his projects…. Again.”

 

Pushing himself away from the table, Yoshi made his way over to Donatello’s room… before changing direction and heading towards the lab instead.

 

“Donatello?”

 

“One moment Dad!”

 

The door flung open and Donnie raced out, shuffling past his Dad and running to his chair at the table.

 

“Donatello?!”

 

As he walked back to the table, Donnie was already tucking eagerly into his breakfast… very out of character.

 

“My son?” 

 

Donnie glanced up from his breakfast and smiled, his cheeks bulging with the food.

 

“Why were you so late for breakfast?”

 

Swallowing, Donnie continued to beam. “Just a new idea I was working on!”

 

“And… your sudden enthusiasm for food?”

 

“I can’t wait to go to training!”

 

Everyone frowned at this… that was really out of character.

 

“Who are you and what have you done with my baby brother!” Mikey suddenly exclaimed, pointing his spoon at the eleven-year-old, “Invasion of the Shape-shifters!”

 

“No!” Donnie cackled, “I just want to try something! A little experiment of mine.”

 

Ah… now that made much more sense.

 

“An experiment my son?” Yoshi raised an eyebrow, “Would this have anything to do with those metal bracelets around your wrists?”

 

The other three craned their neck to try and get a better look as Donnie held them up. 

 

“Yep!” he beamed, “It came to me in a dream!”

 

“…. You look like Wonder Woman.”

 

“That too.”

 

…………………………………………………………..

 

“Alright…” Donnie stood in the middle of the dojo and held out his arms, “… someone needs to shock me… like a lot.”

 

Mikey was already preparing to shift into a creature that would handle this request until Yoshi held up a hand.

 

“Nobody is shocking anyone until I get a better explanation… what are the bracelets for Donatello?”

 

“Glad you asked Dad! You see, I’ve noticed that if I absorb too much electricity, then my body struggles to keep it contained and it usually ends up all over the room I’m in. It’s like I have a storage jug in my body… when it over-fills, then the electricity spills over. These bracelets will help me increase the jugs capacity.”

 

“So…” Raph frowned, “… any extra electricity will go into the bracelets?”

 

“Exactly! And then, if needed I can use the extra electricity in one short burst!”

 

“Like an ultimate attack!” Mikey spoke up this time.

 

“…. Yeah, sorta.” Donnie moved into a standard defensive position, and glanced over at Leo, “If you can create a little lightning?”

 

Leo glanced at Yoshi, silently asking permission. Once he was given that permission, Leo turned his attention back to Donnie and raised his hands up slightly, causing dark clouds to swirl around the dojo as thunder rumbled and lightning started to flash.

 

Eventually, the storm grew to a point where the lightning started to strike the floor of the dojo… before slowly being absorbed into Donnie, his eyes glowing bright blue as he continued to absorb more and more.

 

“Alright, that’s enough…” Yoshi eventually spoke up, knowing that Donnie was reaching the end of his limits.

 

“I can take more Dad!”

 

“I said, that’s enough!”

 

At the stern command from his Father, Leo instantly stopped the storm and he and stared at Donnie, eyes wide as their younger brother’s hair stood up on end and the lightning crackled all around all… and then it was gone.

 

“Okay…” Donnie whispered, “…the electricity should now be stored in these bracelets, which means…” he twisted around to face the training dummy, “… I should be able to do this!”

 

He slammed the two bracelets together, sending a large bolt of electricity flying straight for the dummy… which exploded, the remnants bursting into flames.

 

“WOAH!” the other three boys exclaimed, eyes wide as Donnie twisted around to face them, a slightly manic grin on his face.

 

“I think I can probably make them smaller and more… me, but what do you think?”

 

There was a brief moment of silence before Yoshi finally spoke up. “I think we’re going to need more training dummies.”


	25. Rage and Serenity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.  
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

“AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!”

 

Donnie almost jumped out of his skin as there was a loud scream, followed by an explosion.

 

It was only Raph and him in the lair at that moment. Their Dad had taken Mikey to the comic book store, and Leo wanted to go as well… he was a secret comic book nerd, but nobody liked to mention that.

 

Worst kept secret and all that.

 

And Raph was now screaming…. Great.

 

Putting his project to one side, Donnie cautiously made his way out of his lab and towards the training dojo.

 

“AAAAAAAAHHHHHHhh!”

 

Another BOOM followed afterward.

 

“Raphie?” The twelve-year-old cautiously called out, “Raphie?”

 

Raph was standing in the middle of the dojo, hands glowing slightly as he charged another wooden sword, preparing to throw it at another training dummy.

 

“RAPH!”

 

Raph yelped, dropping the sword to the ground and grunting as it exploded on contact with the ground. “Donnie, what the hell- “

 

“- Why are you screaming?!”

 

A red flush appeared on Raph’s face, as he shifted nervously from side to side. “My... my powers are better when I’m angry… The explosions are bigger.”

 

“… So you make yourself angry?”

 

“Don’t judge me Donnie!”

 

Donnie held up his hands and winced, “I’m not! I just think there’s any easier way!”

 

“Well go on then smartass!” Raph was starting to lose his temper again, “I’m sure you have all the answers!”

 

“Remember the X-Men film?”

 

Raph frowned, “Which one?”

 

“The one with young Professor X and Magneto… remember?”

 

“Mikey’s the nerdy twin, not me.” Raph shrugged, “I don’t pay attention to crap like that.”

 

Raph had actually enjoyed the film but was too ‘cool’ to admit that.

 

“Well…” Donnie sighed, “… Magneto used to say anger was the only way to use his powers as well, but Professor X taught him a different way.”

 

“Life isn’t a comic book Donnie, it’s not just that simple!”

 

“Well then there’s no harm in trying it…” he stepped closer to Raph, and seated himself on the floor, staring up at his older brother, “… what do you think about that makes you so angry? Leo?”

 

There was silence for a few moments, before Raph chuckled and shook his head. “Daddy-Junior frustrates me… he doesn’t make me angry.”

 

“Well… what does then?”

 

“… The night Mum died… I keep thinking about her body… those claw marks in her chest, the blood, the house on fire… it just makes me so angry that Saki could come in and ruin everything like he did!”

 

Raph’s hand started to glow again, indicating just how angry the thoughts made him.

 

“Okay, okay, okay…” Donnie, gently placed his hands on Raph’s wrists, softly encouraging him to calm down, “… we just have to think of a memory that gets the same reaction, without the anger and the screaming.”

 

“What I have, works for me!”

 

“Bad guys are going to hear you screaming and either run away or shoot at you, ‘cause they’ll know exactly where you are!”

 

He had a point… ninjas shouldn’t really be shrieking and giving their position away.

 

“Alright…” Raph eventually sighed, “… what exactly d’ya want me to do?”

 

Shuffling forwards eagerly, Donnie beamed. “Okay, in the film Professor X went into Magneto’ mind, but we can’t do that, so you’ll have to do the work.”

 

“What? You don’t have some weird device that will read people’s minds?”

 

Donnie ignored him, “Okay, just think of a memory of Mum…. A happy and peaceful one.”

 

“And this is meant to make my explosions more powerful?”

 

“Just do it.”

 

Raph rolled his eyes and closed his eyes. There was a brief moment of silence before he groaned. “What’s the point of this?”

 

“The point is… the point is that you’ll still feel angry because of what happened to Mum, but the happy memory will help bring that down a little bit. Between rage and serenity.”

 

“And if I don’t have a really happy memory of Mum?”

 

Donnie didn’t have anything to say about that, simply tilting his head to one side and waiting patiently.

 

“… I have one, but it’s not a very good one.”

 

“Oh?”

 

There was silence, before Raph turned to Donnie and reached over, pulling his younger brother closer. “You won’t remember this, you were only a baby, one I think… Dad was with you, Leo wanted to help, and Mikey was watching one of those stupid cartoons of his. Me and Mum never really spent much time together after you were born…” he held up his hand, stopping Donnie from interrupting, “… it weren’t your fault kid. Just how it was.”

 

“… What’s the memory?”

 

“… It was nearly Christmas...” A small smile appeared on Raph’s face, “… Dad had just gotten the tree. He always used to complain that it was a useless American tradition, by Mum loved it…. And she wanted to decorate it. With everyone else busy, I jumped at the chance to help.” The smile widened, “I can still remember her smile.”

 

“… I can’t really remember smile anymore.”

 

“And that’s why I get angry… because we lost our Mum way before we should have.” The tone wasn’t angry or annoyed, but it was definitely not happy…. And his hands were glowing.

 

Slowly, Donnie handed some small projectiles over and encouraged his older brother to throw them at the target, which shattered with just as much force as it had when Raph was angry.

 

“Alright… “Raph muttered, “… you win.”

 

“And now, no more screaming!”

 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”


	26. Teenagers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.  
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

Police sirens echoed through the sewers.

 

They were doing that a lot recently.

 

Yoshi was startled out of his meditation, groaning at the sound as he heard the lair door open… he knew exactly who it was.

 

“RAPHAEL!” he bellowed, storming out of his room and heading straight for the fourteen-year-old, “Raphael! Are those…” he stopped frowning at the sight of Raph walking into the room, his motorbike helmet still on his head, “… because of you… they’re because of you.”

 

Raph ignored him, walking past him as though his Father had never spoken.

 

“Raphael! Are those sirens because of you? Were you messing around on that death-trap again? Speeding?”

 

“I was only going about 5 over the limit…” Raph eventually grunted, “…they over-reacted.”

 

“What would you have done if they caught you? What would you have done if they found out you don’t have a license? That you’re only a kid?”

 

Silence again.

 

“Do you want to get arrested? Do you want to draw attention to your brothers?”

 

Raph scoffed and rolled his eyes, “They’re just jealous they don’t blend in as well as me.”

 

“Raphael! Are you trying to draw attention to us?!”

 

Silence.

 

“My son…” Yoshi moved and placed a gentle hand on his son’s shoulder, “… I just don’t want to see you throw away your entire future!”

 

“… Yeah, what future?” Raph shrugged off the hand and stormed away towards his room, throwing his helmet to the ground.

 

Yoshi resisted the urge to throw his hands up into the air in exasperation, walking back towards his meditation room.

 

God, please don’t let there be any more incidents.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

God wasn’t listening to him.

 

Less than an hour later, Yoshi was startled out of his thoughts by the sounds of Mikey shrieking and being chased through the home…. By Leo.

 

“COME BACK HERE MIKEY!”

 

As he emerged from his room, Yoshi watched as Leo tackled Mikey to the ground, instantly letting the fourteen-year-old go as Mikey licked his arm.

 

“Eurgh! MIKEY!”

 

Mikey set off running again, cackling as he was tackled to the ground once again.

 

“I told you to stop touching my things Mikey!” Leo growled, gripping Mikey tightly to prevent the younger teen from running away, “Are you stupid! Don’t you understand!”

 

“No!”

 

“No, you don’t understand?!”

 

“No!” Mikey seemed amused by all this.

 

“No what?!”

 

“No, no, no, no, no!” Mikey cackled even louder as Leo let go of him, rolling around on the floor in glee.

 

“You are such a pain Mikey!”

 

“You’re just jealous of my amazing abilities!”

 

“I knew we should have sold you and Raph for rabbits! They wouldn’t touch my stuff!”

 

“But then everyone would be smarter than you! Including the rabbits!”

 

“But they’d be quieter!”

 

“They’d be stinky! Like you!”

 

“Alright! Enough!” Yoshi intervened, stepping in and frowning at the two, “We do not fight like untrained baboons in this house. Fighting only takes place during training, so you will both go to your rooms!”

 

Leo looked like he wanted to protest as Mikey shot up and raced away, but eventually nodded and pushed himself to his feet, heading towards his room.

 

Until he heard Mikey blow a raspberry behind him.

 

“Go to your room Mikey!” he spun around and glared at the younger teen, growling when Mikey peeked around his doorframe.

 

“Already in my room Daddy junior!”

 

“Don’t call me that!”

 

“BOYS!” Yoshi felt like he was going to snap, “ENOUGH!”

 

Two bedrooms doors slammed, and Yoshi walked over to the sofa, collapsing onto it and burying his face in his hands.

 

3 out of 4 in their rooms.

 

It was not shaping up to be a peaceful day.

 

Maybe Donatello was in a better mood.

 

Suddenly having a need to have a peaceful moment with at least one of his sons, Yoshi made he way over to Donnie’s lab. The door was partially ajar, which was practically an open invitation to come in when it came to Donatello.

 

Yoshi knocked anyway. “Donatello my son? May I come in?”

 

“Uh… yeah! Just a minute!”

 

There was the sound of stuff being moved off the desk, before Don spoke up again. “Okay, okay you can come in!”

 

Slowly, Yoshi made his way inside, smiling as Donnie beamed up at him, google still on his face, making his violet eyes seem so much bigger. There were oil smudges all over him with many different compartments lying on the table.

 

“Are you alright my son? I hope you weren’t too distressed by Leonardo and Michelangelo’s little… discussion?”

 

Donnie wasn’t a huge fan of arguing, often retreating into his room to hide with some loud, classical music, and Yoshi often felt an urge to check on him after the others had argued… it was usually with Leo and Raph though.

 

Donnie shrugged, “I didn’t hear it…. Too busy.”

 

“Ah, and what are you working on?”

 

“Cameras… for outside the house.” Donnie gestured to an old security shadow sitting on his desk, “I can hook it up to my laptop and keep an eye on everything outside, just in case people start sniffing around.”

 

“An excellent idea…” Yoshi then realised something…. His son hadn’t found those cameras on their last trip to the junkyard, “… Donatello… where did you get those cameras?”

 

Enter guilty expression.

 

Yoshi knew instantly what had happened.

 

“Donatello…” he scolded sternly, “… please tell me you didn’t go up to the surface without me.”

 

“… It was early morning! Nobody was going to be around!”

 

“That is not the point Donatello! The point is, you know you’re not allowed up there with supervision!”

 

“I’m twelve! You were letting the others go up!”

 

“No, I wasn’t! They didn’t listen to me either, and I’ll be damned if I let you get hurt because you’re not listening to my instructions!”

 

Yoshi very rarely cursed, indicating just how frustrated he was…. Today had been a day of frustrations.

 

“But Dad- “

 

“- No Donatello!”

 

Donatello was silent for a few moments, before he grabbed the cameras and threw them down at Yoshi’s feet, before storming past him and heading towards his bedroom. “Sorry for trying to keep the family safe!” he yelled, before entering his room and slamming his door behind him, the lock clicks echoing throughout the entire lair.

 

Yoshi felt like he’d aged fifty years in less than two hours.

 

And he always thought teenage girls would be worse.


	27. Things Change

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.  
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

“Remember, to be a true ninja, you must become one with the shadows. Darkness gives the ninja power, whilst light reveals the ninja’s presence.” Yoshi gestured to the lit candle that was balanced on the edge of his walking stick, “Now… can you extinguish this flame without revealing your presence…. And without your powers.”

 

He flipped the candle into his hand and waited patiently.

 

Footsteps coming from the right.

 

He quickly lowered the candle, smirking as his youngest dived over it and skidded into the wall.

 

“Too noisy Donatello…” he gently scolded the thirteen-year-old.

 

Footsteps from the front.

 

Flipping back, Yoshi spun around and kicked Mikey away… straight into Donatello by the sound of it.

 

“OW! Mikey!”

 

“Sorry baby bro!”

 

“Too clumsy Michelangelo.”

 

Tiptoeing footsteps from behind.

 

He ducked, just as Raphael dove for him…. But his fifteen-year-old never stopped at one attack, meaning that Yoshi remained prepared… so when Raphael ran for him again, he used his walking stick to trip the older twin, sending him skidding across the floor towards the other two.

 

“Oh, come on! Raph!”

 

Yoshi smirked, “Poor choice, Raphael.”

 

Suddenly, there was sound of a katana slicing through the air as the candle was chopped in half, and 17 year old Leo landed on the ground, the top half of the candle landing on the flat of his katana, before he blew out the flame.

 

Flicking the light back on, Yoshi gave his oldest a warm smile. “An aerial attack… well done Leonardo.”

 

“Teacher’s pet.” Raphael growled.

 

Leo smirked, “Ninja drop-out.”

 

“Ooooooooo!” Both Mikey and Donnie laughed, taking a step back as Raph and Leo squared up against one another.

 

Yoshi resisted the urge to groan, “No, no, no…” he placed his walking stick in between them, “… Not today, please…. Your paths in life are already difficult. The outside world will not understand, they will fear your powers. This is why I teach you these skills… so that you can defend yourselves, no matter what happens. Stealth, secrecy- “

 

He stopped in his tracks, spotting his second youngest out of the corner of his eye.

 

Mikey had spotted a fly…. The child with no attention span, had spotted a fly.

 

A long, frog’s tongue darted out to try and catch the fly, only to slap the wall wetly, as Mikey grimaced in disgust. 

 

The second strike was successful and Mikey threw his hands up into the air in glee… until Yoshi slammed his stick against the ground. “Michelangelo, will you just- “

 

Suddenly, a rumble echoed throughout the entire room, rubble falling to the ground as everyone tensed.

 

“What was that?” Yoshi asked as they all started to back from where the rubble was falling.

 

“Earthquake!” Mikey cried out.

 

Donnie however, was not convinced. “In New York? Possible, but not likely… if we were in California or Alaska, then it’d be more likely but- “

 

He stopped in his tracks, as Yoshi grabbed the back of his t-shirt and pulled him away just as a large piece of rubble hit the ground.

 

And then the wall practically exploded, small robotic robots with sharp ‘teeth’ coming through the hole.

 

“Donnie, these had better not be yours!”

 

“I don’t… think so?”

 

“Nah, it’s not Donnie…” Mikey cackled, “… it’s the next evolution of New York cockroaches!”

 

“Who cares!” Raph grabbed a largish rock from the ground, charging it and throwing it at the tiny robots, laughing as several of them exploded.

 

Donnie grabbed his electrical bo-staff and sent an electrical current running threw it, blasting the one’s who’d survived Raph’s explosion and causing them to overload.

 

Up above, Mikey had shifted into an orangutan, scooping up the robots one by one and throwing them towards Leo, who sliced through them with his katana, like a knife through butter.

 

But there were too many of them.

 

Soon, the ceiling began to crack as the support beam were gnawed at, the pieces eventually falling to the ground.

 

As Leo pulled Raph out of the way, they quickly realised that the rubble was separating them from Yoshi. 

 

“Dad!” Raph called out, rushing forward… but it was too late…. There was a wall of rubble in front of them.

 

Mikey desperately pulled at the rubble, only to curse when he realised that one sharp tug could crush them all. “Maybe I can shift into some sort of bug and crawl through to the other side?”

 

“I wouldn’t…” Donnie warned, “… there’s a high chance of you getting trapped in there.”

 

Whilst clearly not happy with the decision, Mikey took a step back from the rubble and turned his attention to the fallen robots. “What the hell are these things?!”

 

“Junk…” Raph kicked one away, “… fucking junk.”

 

“Forget about them!” Leo ordered, “We need to find Dad! Dad! Can you hear me!”

 

Silence.

 

“Donnie, is there anyway to- “

 

“- On it.” Donnie was already fiddling about with his phone, “I gave a phone a couple of weeks ago, so I’m giving him a call. There’s a chance he’s just on the other side.”

 

The phone rang a few times, before it beeped and a familiar, if slightly grouchy male voice came over the speakers. “Hmmmm…. What button do you press to answer this thing? Hello?”

 

“Dad!”

 

“Heeellllooooo!” It was clear that their Dad as frantically pushing buttons on the other end, as the sound of beeps and boops started to echo throughout the destroyed home, “Stupid device.”

 

Donnie rolled his eyes, “Dad, I explained this to you…. You’ve already answered it by flipping the cover up.” His tone was fond yet exasperated.

 

“Ah, excellent!” Their Dad finally seemed to understand, “It seems as though those things have chewed straight through the support beams of our home. We must leave straight away… get as many of your belongings that you can and meet me at the old drainage junction at the south point.”

 

Knowing that he had a map in his room, Donnie rushed in that direction, grabbing the map from his desk, before rushing back and opening it out on the floor in order to allow his brothers to see it as well.

 

“If we take the south conduit, it’ll intersect with the old drainage point…” he pointed out, as Leo turned his attention back to the phone.

 

“We’ll meet you there, Dad.”

 

As soon as he hung up the phone, Mikey jumped over, wrapping his arms around Leo’s neck. “What did he say… did he mention me?”

 

Raph growled, “Shut up Mikey!”

 

“Alright, enough you two!” Leo straightened up and glanced at them all, “We need to get our stuff and get going… remember to pack clean underwear.”

 

“Ugh!” “Leeeeooooo!” “You don’t have to remind us!”

 

As they moved through what remained of their home, cramming as much as they could into travel backpacks, Mikey glanced around sadly.

 

“Goodbye broken pipe… goodbye grungy payphone… goodbye dented manhole cover…. Goodbye home sweet home.”

 

“And hello cruel world.” Raph shook his head, grabbing his twin’s arms and pulling him towards the exit, “Come on!”

 

After Raph had exploded a hole in the wall, they all walked out into the main tunnels of the sewers.

 

The tunnels weren’t any better than their home.

 

“Looks like those things came through here.” Leo muttered, as Donnie glanced up, a worried frown on his face.

 

“These walls are seriously compromised…” he muttered, “… I’m surprised the ceiling hasn’t completely caved in on us yet.”

 

And then they saw the rubble blocking their path up ahead.

 

“You were saying?” Raph growled.

 

Seventeen-year-old Leo seemed to agree with the assessment, “Can’t go forward… can’t go back.”

 

“So, we go up!”

 

Leo turned to Raph and glared at him, “Not a good idea Raph, how do we know these robots weren’t part of a trap to lure us up there?!”

 

But Raph was already heading up the steel ladder.

 

“We’ve got nowhere else to go Leo…” Donnie quietly pointed out, as Leo growled in frustration.

 

“Alright fine! But we’re only going up to come right back down the next one…. No messing around, okay? We remain unseen at all times, no matter what.”

 

“Blah blah blah stick to the shadows, blah blah blah.” Raph rolled his eyes, “Just stick with me golden boy, I know the way.”

 

Leo decided not to retort, following the older twin up to the surface. However, whilst Raph was out instantly, moving to the shadows of the alleyway, Leo hung about near the manhole, being overly suspicious.

 

Or at least, he was in Mikey’s opinion.

 

“C’mon, move it Leo!” he whined below his oldest brother, “I don’t want to be staring at your butt any longer than I have to!”

 

Suddenly, there was the sound of a moped, and they all moved back into hiding, with Raph pressing himself against the wall of the alleyway. Once it passed, Raph then leapt onto the awning of the nearby Jazz club, and then clung to the lamppost next to it.

 

“Manhole at twelve o’clock…” he muttered victoriously, pushing himself off the post and over to the other side of the street, only to have to hide behind a car as a truck backed into the alleyway, men leaving it and heading into the building on their right.

 

Once he was sure that they were gone, he darted into the alley himself, only to start swearing furiously under his breath when he spotted the wheel over the manhole cover.

 

“Great! Just fucking great!!” He muttered, kicking the truck again and again, “Inconsiderate assholes!”

 

“Way to be stealthy Raph!” Leo scolded, as he and the other brothers followed him into the alleyway, Mikey laughing behind him.

 

“Yeah, I don’t think they heard you over in New Jersey!”

 

“Just give me a hand!”

 

When Mikey raised his hands to clap, Raph pointed at him and shook his head. “Don’t even think about it…. Forget you guys, I’ll push it myself.”

 

Heading to the back of the truck, where the back doors were still open, Raph prepared to push the truck… until he heard noise coming from the side door, where the men had originally entered.

 

“Raph!” Leo hissed, partly in fear and partly in frustration, “Raph you need to hide! Now!”

 

Raph panicked for a brief moment, before diving into the back of the truck (missing how all his brothers groaned and winced in sympathy, with Mikey shaking his head and hissing “Poor choice Raphy).

 

Thankfully, as the men walked out, they were oblivious to Raph holding himself up near the roof of the truck. 

 

“Did ya see how that guy cringed when he took his money!” one of the men laughed, “Sheep, I tell ya! Sheep to be fleeced by us wolves!” They started throwing bags of money into the truck, before shutting the doors and locking them.

 

Then they were off.

 

“Oh man…” Mikey was beside himself laughing, “… imagine the look on their faces when they open up the back of that truck!”

 

Donnie, who was also laughing, nodded in agreement. “Schrodinger’s Cat…. When the truck is open, Raph is either angry… or really angry.”

 

“Dad is actually going to kill us…” Leo groaned, burying his face in his hands, “… we need to get him out of there!”

 

“Last one to the roof is a rotten egg!”

 

“Donnie!”

 

Donnie just giggled, back-flipping onto the fire-escape, leaping onto the one above, and then onto the roof, seconds before Mikey reached it. “Winner!”

 

“And Leo’s the loser!”

 

Leo simply rolled his eyes and ignored, immediately heading to the edge of the roof and glancing around for the truck… which he spotted very quickly.

 

“We can cut them off at third and first!”

 

“If we run like crazy!”

 

“Is there any other way to run?!”

 

As Donnie and Leo sped ahead, Mikey (who saw everything as a race) transformed into a hawk and fly past them, waiting until he was way ahead of them, before transforming back and dropping down onto the rooftop in of them…. After knocking all of the washing off of a nearby washing line.

 

“Hmmm…. Springtime fresh!”

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

Unaware of the troubles his sons were going through, Yoshi walked slowly through the tunnels of the sewers, his stick tapping along the ground.

 

When he reached the Old Drainage Junction, he glanced around and frowned…. His sons really should have been here by now.

 

Before he could pull out the damnable phone and give them a call, the ground started the rumble and shake again as two robots burst their way free and snapped at Yoshi.

 

………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

“Two-Ton, watch the truck!” Ordered the leader of the gang, as the truck pulled into another alleyway, “We wouldn’t want anyone to steal our stolen money.”

 

Up above, the remaining brother watched the large man swing a baseball bat around…. Clearly not trained.

 

“I got this…” Mikey whispered, dropping down before Leo could protest. Picking a scrap piece of paper off the ground, he slowly made his way over to the man and tapped him on the back. “Hey, this is a no parking zone…” he chuckled, handing the man the paper, “… here’s your ticket, and here’s your fine!”

 

Without giving the man a chance to react, Mikey kicked him in the face, sending him flying to the ground, completely unconscious.

 

“Alright, I admit it….” Leo dropped to the ground beside the body, “…. That was impressive Mikey.”

 

“What can I say, it’s a ninja thing.”

 

His show of pride was broken by the sound of Raphael banging against the doors of the truck, clearly trying to yell through the reinforced steel.

 

“Oh yeah….” Leo winced, “… we should really get Raph out.”

 

As they all went to examine the lock, Mikey winced. “Jesus… what happened to simple padlocks?”

 

“Oh where’s the fun in that?” Donnie reached into his bag, pulling out a few tools as Mikey turned his attention to his trapped twin… who was still banging on the doors.

 

“What’s that Raphie?” Mikey held his hands near his ears, “You’ll have to speak up dude…. I caaaaan’t heeeeaaarrrrr yoooooouuuu!”

 

Raph was silent for a moment, before punching the door with all of his might.

 

“Okay, I heard that.”

 

Turning to his brother, Donnie glared at him, his eyes magnified by the googles he was wearing, “I’m trying to work here Mikey… don’t make you shock you.”

 

“Oooooooooooo.”

 

…………………………………………………………………

 

Two robots had turned to four…. And one had grabbed his coat, tugging at it roughly, until it ripped.

 

“I’ve just sewed that up!” Yoshi growled, kicking the robot into a nearby wall.

 

Not that it did any damage.

 

They all lunged at him.

 

…………………………………………………………………..

 

“Can’t you just make the lock short-circuit?”

 

Donnie rolled his eyes, “And risk it just shutting forever? No way… this requires careful wire manipulation.”

 

After a couple more beeps, the doors clicked open and Donnie immediately moved to the side…. Mikey didn’t.

 

“Hey bro!” he held his arms out and smirked, “Good to see- “

 

“- AAARRRRRGGGGGHHHH!”

 

Raph came charging out of the back of the truck, tackling Mikey to the ground as the pair immediately started to wrestle with all their might.

 

“Hothead…” Leo muttered, wincing as Raph grabbed Mikey’s arm and twisted it up behind his back.

 

And they noticed a different problem.

 

“Ummm, Raphie…” Donnie pulled his bo staff free, “… bigger problems over here.”

 

Raph, who had Mikey pinned up against a nearby wall, growled angrily. “Bigger than him?!”

 

At the end of the alleyway, the gang members were walking up to them, steel pipes and baseball bats in their hands.

 

“Well, look at what we have here…” the leader smirked at the four of them, taking in their coloured hair… and then smirking at the sight of Leo practically shielding his youngest brother from view, “… you lot are in for a world of hurt! Nobody messes with the Purple Dragons!”

 

They quickly changed their minds though.

 

With a little bit of fog, and Mikey shifting into a tiger, the gang ran out of the alleyway, their dignities left behind.

 

“Yeah!” Mikey, high-fiving his twin, “Nailed it!”

 

Donnie nodded in agreement, “That was easier than I thought it would be.”

 

“I hope there are more of those guys….” Raph grinned, “… I’m just getting warmed up.”

 

“Ummmm…” Everyone turned to see Mikey looking up at the rooftops, “… looks like you’re about to get your wish Raphie!”

 

Up on the roofs, were several men dressed in ninja gear, a familiar sign printed on their tunics.

 

“Please tell me they’re not who I think they are!” Leo exclaimed, katanas already drawn and eyes glowing blue.

 

The ninjas all jumped down from the roofs, forming a circle around the teens.

 

“Well…” Mikey’s voice quivered slightly, “… they’re definitely ninjas… and they definitely look like they want to kill us.”

 

Leo glanced over at Donnie, making sure that his youngest brother was alright, before turning to the twins. “Be ready for anything.”

 

“I’m so going to enjoy this…” Raph flicked his sai in between his fingers, sending a wicked grin towards the nearest ninja.

 

As the ninjas leapt to the attack, Donnie was the first to move, vaulting over a large group of them, before spinning around and using his bo staff to sweep their legs out from under them.

 

Unfortunately, they all got up fairly quickly.

 

“Alright…” Donnie muttered, “… Plan B.”

 

Meanwhile, Raph was surrounded be three more ninjas… and loving every minute of it.

 

“Oh, nice Tri-Kick! Swett double Phoenix punch!” He ducked and smirked, “Hey, you guys know this one?”

 

In one swift movement, he spun around and managed to kick all of them in the face, knocking them back.

 

Leo was fighting two with his katanas, and Mikey was doing the same with his nunchucks, shifting occasionally to throw them off balance.

 

Meanwhile, Donnie had managed to whittle the group down to only two… two ninjas had started throwing throwing stars at him. “Careful!” he exclaimed, “This is delicate equipment! Can’t you see the wires?”

 

The ninjas clearly didn’t care, with one leaping up into the air and kicking Donnie in the chest, sending him flying back into the truck, with Mikey hitting it not far behind him.

 

“You okay baby bro?” Mikey asked quickly, eyes worried as Donnie rubbed his chest, “You know, I can’t tell if we’re beating them, or if they’re beating us?”

 

Donnie raised his head to answer, only to spot something incoming, prompting him to open the truck doors and climb inside, pulling Mikey in with him and shutting the door… only for several throwing doors to stick into the metal.

 

“Ask me again when we’re winning Mikey.”

 

“Yeah…. That’s what I thought.”

 

……………………………………………………………………………….

 

In the sewers, Yoshi destroyed the last remaining robots, stabbing his stick through their heads as the light in their eyes died out. Before he could fully relax however, the ground beneath him started to rumble, before disappearing out from his feet, sending him falling.

 

As he cried out in alarm, he connected sharply with the walls of another tunnel system, sliding down until he landed in another corridor.

 

“I’m too old for this…” he grumbled to himself, rubbing his back and shoulder as they started to ache severely, “… seriously too old.”

 

And then he saw the bright light.

 

…………………………………………………………………………..

 

Leo grunted as he jumped to the roof of the truck, conjuring up a thick cloud of fog in order to give him and his brothers a chance to breath.

 

“How many of these bastards do we have to take down before they get the hint!” Raph growled, glancing around and quickly spotting someone missing, “Tell me someone’s got Donnie in their sights.”

 

“He’s working on Plan B…” Mikey reassured the other two, “…. A little bit of wire manipulation.”

 

Underneath the dash of the truck, Donnie was messing around with the wires, his eyes lightly glowing as he twisted the electricity to his advantage. With one final zap, the truck roared to life, and Donnie clambered into the driver’s seat, “The bus now leaving for anywhere but here!”

 

“Come on, let’s go!”

 

The other three jumped into the back as Donnie shot away…. Hitting every bin in sight as they left the alleyway.

 

“Nice driving Don!” Mikey groaned, rolling around the floor, “I’m surprised your feet even reach the pedals!”

 

“Hey! Do you want pretty, or do you want effective?!”

 

“We’d like to get back alive!”

 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”

 

As the truck violently swerved around a few more corners, Mikey spoke up again. “Dudes, this has been a bizarre day! First all those metal robots, and what’s with all those ninjas! Ninjas in New York City… beside us?! It’s just not right!”

 

Another turn sent Mikey flying to the ground.

 

“Speaking of not right…” Raph had one of the bags on his lap, unzipping it reveal several hundred dollar bills, “… check this out.”

 

As he tipped it out onto the floor, Mikey grabbed a handful in each hand and whooped in glee, “Show me the money baby!”

 

“Mikey…” Leo sighed, “… this isn’t finders keepers. Donnie, keep your eyes out for any police… we’ll leave it with them.”

 

“… Are you sure that’s the best idea?” Donnie asked, grip tightening on the wheel, “Technically, what I’m doing is illegal.”

 

“Donnie…. Don’t argue with me right now.”

 

Needless to say, in New York it was easy to find a police car. Donnie braked slightly, and Leo threw the bags of money out of the window. “Look after this money guys, will you?!”

 

Then, they were off again, missing the shocked looks on the officers’ faces.

 

In less than 10 minutes, Donnie smashed through the gates that led to a sewer public entrance, the truck slamming off the walls as they made their way to the meeting place, where their Dad was patiently waiting for them.

 

“Dad!” they all called out, jumping out of the truck and running over to the older man, wrapping him in one big group hug.

 

Yoshi chuckled fondly, giving each of them a hug (and scanning them for any injuries). “Well, I’m glad to see you too my sons, and I’m sure the story of how you got that truck, and why your youngest brother was driving it, is very interesting…” Pause for guilty looks “…. But right now, I think we should all go home.”

 

“Home?” Mikey frowned.

 

“We ain’t got a home….” Raph seemed to agree with Mikey’s unfinished question, “… those robots shredded the place! Remember?”

 

“No need to worry…” Yoshi reassured his sons, “… I believe I’ve found a solution to our current housing problem. Follow me.” With that, he jumped into a large hole in the middle of the floor.

 

Not missing a chance to show off some of their acrobatic abilities, Leo front-flipped into the hole, Donnie dived in (giggling as he went), and Mikey prepared to jump.

 

“Cowabung-AAARRRGH!” Mikey yelped as he was pushed from behind, “NOT FUNNY RAPH!”

 

“Oh yes it is.” Raph chuckled, before jumping in himself.

 

At the bottom, all the brothers were piled on top of one another, not that it really bothered them as they laughed at the thrill, pushing themselves to their feet.

 

“Wicked slide!” Mikey whooped in glee.

 

As they headed down the corridor, Mikey rushed to catch up with their Dad, glancing around and frowning, “No offense Dad, but this place doesn’t seem all that great.”

 

“Look with your heart Michelangelo, not with your eyes… and walk this way.”

 

As Yoshi headed away, he missed how Mikey started impersonating him, bending over and pretending to walk with a stick… and then got hit in the head with Donnie’s staff with a resounding THUNK, followed by Mikey’s cry of “OW!”

 

Following their Father through a large doorway, the four teens gasped in amazement.

 

“This is beyond awesome!” Mikey exclaimed, gazing around at the tan and blue structures, the platforms up above that led to several other rooms, the pool in the centre of the room…. It was almost twice the size of their old place.

 

“I could really tune this place up.” Donnie muttered under his breath, as Mikey started to claim as many rooms as he could.

 

“This room’s mine!” he announced, pointing at one that was on the second level, “And where Donnie’s standing, that room’s also mine!”

 

Donnie did hope that that room would be his lab, but he rolled his eyes and backed away anyway.

 

“See my sons…” Yoshi chuckled, keeping a careful eye on the younger twin, “… change can be a good thing.”

 

“We couldn’t agree more Dad.”

 

“Good… now let’s see you boys clean up for a change. This chamber is filthy!”

 

“AWWWWWW!”

 

……………………………………………………………….

 

Oroku Saki sipped at his green tea, posed perfectly in meditation as he glared at the quivering man in front of him.

 

“S-s-sir! My men… w-w-we lost the armoured car with the money!” stammered the Purple Dragon member, “B-But we were attacked by these… freaks with coloured hair! They were like ninjas or something! They took us by surprise, i-it wasn’t m-my fault!”

 

“Enough!”

 

At the growl, the other man shrank back. “I-I promise Sir, I-I won’t fail you again!”

 

“I know…” Saki whispered, “… you won’t fail me again.”

 

Before the man could even scream, a sword sliced through the air and blood spurted from his neck, the body falling limp to the floor.

 

“So…” Saki continued, speaking to himself now, “… you finally decide to emerge Yoshi. You and your boys.”


	28. A Better Mousetrap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.  
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review 

That was a lot of TV’s.

 

Hanging from the second level of their new lair, fiddling with the wiring and new heating system, Donnie watched as Mikey placed yet another TV on top of the ten other ones.

 

“What’s the matter Mikey?” he called down to the fifteen-year-old, “Can’t decide what to watch?”

 

Mikey glanced up at him and beamed, “I need more power Captain!” he laughed in his best Star Trek impression, “The Ninja Cave must be set to maximum entertainment potential!”

 

He plugged the power cable in and switched on the TV, yelping as the screens blared a bright white, with the sound being almost deafening, forcing him to switch it off quickly, a disappointed look on his face.

 

“Ninja cave…” Donnie chuckled, nimbly making his way down to the ground, “… that’s lame!”

 

“So, what would you call it? The sewer of solitude?”

 

“Ummmm, Yoshi’s school for gifted mutants?”

 

“The Hall of Nin-Justice!”

 

“Boys….” They turned to face their Dad, who was stitching something on the tatty sofa, “… we will call this place home.”

 

“Catchy.”

 

Yoshi chuckled, before gesturing for his youngest to come closer, holding up a purple, woollen sweater. Donnie was always the first to get the illness and the last to shake it off, and it always hit him the hardest, and until the heating was fully sorted, he was going to insist on his youngest remaining warm. “I wonder what’s keeping Leonardo and Raphael?” he mused, handing the jumper over and making sure Donnie actually put it on.

 

“They just went to get the last of our stuff from the old place…” Mikey answered, “… ten bucks they’re arguing!”

 

“Michelangelo.”

 

As Mikey winced at the scolding tone in his Dad’s voice, Donnie moved over to his lab, where bits of the robots were scattered everywhere, “With the way the new Sewer Slider is performing, they should be back any minute now Dad…” he then turned his attention to the robot parts, a tiny bolt of electricity zapping between his thumb and pointer finger, “… now, what makes you tick?”

 

Unfortunately, the tiny bolt of electricity still caused some of the wiring inside to pop, startling Donnie into dropping the part.

 

“Too much, a little too much.”

 

……………………………………………………………………..

 

Meanwhile, in the sewers tunnels that connected the homes together, Leo was packing the last of their belongings into the back of the new Sewer Slider.

 

“I can’t believe this is all we have left…” Leo muttered, as he secured the items to the back.

 

“Yeah, when I find out who built those fucking robots, I’m gonna- “Raph growled, flinging a charged pebble at one of the supporting beams, causing it to crack and the ceiling to rumble.

 

“Raph….” Leo gently placed a hand on his brother’s shoulder, “… let’s just out of here, before this place collapses any further.”

 

Together, they clambered into the Sewer Slider, with Raph in the driver’s seat.

 

“Remember what Donnie said…” Leo warned his younger brother, “… the accelerator hasn’t been properly calibrated yet, so take it nice and SLOW!”

 

But Raph had already put his foot down, the vehicle zooming across the water, the force causing it to shoot upwards. Leo clutched frantically to the items on top of the Slider, but couldn’t help but laugh in glee.

 

“YEEHAW! I’d say this is a successful field trip! Wouldn’t you Leo?!”

 

“YEEHAW!” “YEEHAW!”

 

………………………………………………………………..

 

Placing a sandwich on Donnie’s little table, Yoshi couldn’t help but shudder at the sight of the robot head. “Even though it is inactive, that thing still makes me uneasy Donatello.”

 

Donnie hummed in agreement, tapping the head a couple of times, before sighing wearily, “It’s state-of-the-art technology, that’s for sure. It’s brilliant work, I just have to know how it ticks!”

 

Amused by his youngest’s enthusiasm, Yoshi was about to reassure him that he could keep the robot… and then the headlights of the Sewer Slider shone into the room.

 

“Hey Mikey!” Leo leapt off the Slider, twirling a box on his finger before throwing it at the younger twin, “Your DVD collection survived!”

 

“Awesome! Let’s throw in something light in story, and heavy on gory, because these beauties are ready to go!” He went to switch the TV on again, only for a news report to sound over the speakers.

 

“In a press conference today at Stock-Tronics incorporated, New York’s new leading technology firm- “

 

“- Ugh, boring!” Mikey yawned, already going to change the channel, until Donnie’s quiet voice spoke up.

 

“Wait Mikey! I want to watch this!”

 

Rule 17: If Donnie wanted to watch something, then he was allowed to watch it. After all, he was the only one who didn’t join in with the fights over the remote, very rarely wanting to actually watch something.

 

So, the news report stayed.

 

“Founder and CEO, Dr. Baxter Stockman was on hand to reveal his latest innovation.”

 

A dark-skinned man, with largish glasses, wearing a neatly pressed lab coat, cleared his throat. “A wise man once said, build a better mousetrap and the world will be a path to your door. I say, let the path building begin! For I, Dr. Baxter Stockman, have invented a solution to New York City’s ever-growing rat problem! Ladies and Gentlemen, I present the Stockman Mouser!”

 

He pulled the cover off of his project and the entire family gasped in shock…. On the screen, a familiar looking robot snapped its jaws at them.

 

“Awwww…” Donnie pouted, having followed Stockman’s career for ages, “… I can’t believe the famous Baxter Stockman is trying to pass off these killer robots as something good!”

 

Mikey took the robot head off of him, and cackled, “And what’s with the glasses? Dork city!”

 

“Hey!”

 

Raph however, was less amused by the news, eyes beginning to glow as he grabbed a spoon and threw it at one of the TV’s, causing the screen to smash. “I say we head down to Stock-tronics and kick some serious ass!”

 

“Absolutely not!” Yoshi then decided to step in, cuffing his second oldest around the back of the head, “Your last trip to the streets was a disaster, and we can’t afford for you to be seen by any more people.”

 

“… our newest grad-student, Miss April O’Neil, will release several rats into the simulator. April… proceed my dear.”

 

Turning their attention back to the TV, the family watched as a red-headed woman, who didn’t look much older than Leo, poured some live rats into a well-constructed.

 

“And now…” Stockman lowered the Mouser to the ground, “… witness the genius of what my Mouser can do!”

 

Needless to say, it was gruesome.

 

“Man…” Mikey whispered, “… I’d hate to be a rat in this city.”

 

“Alright, that’s enough…” Yoshi spoke up, grabbing the remote and switching the TV off, “… I believe it’s time for some training, hmmm?”

 

“Awwwww!”

 

His children were disappointed by the prospect of giving up their little investigation…. But little did they know, a certain red-head was doing some investigating of her own.

 

“A simple attack exercise I believe….” Yoshi moved to a clear space, “… you attack, I defend. No powers.”

 

There was a brief pause, before Donnie made the first attack, trying to strike his Father twice before the man’s stick hit him in the back, causing him to yelp in shock.

 

“Don’t lean with your shoulders Donatello.”

 

He heard Leo try and make an attack from above, prompting him to catch the younger man, grabbing him by the collar and throwing him into the distance, watching as the seventeen-year-old skidded along the ground.

 

“Faster on your counter-attack Leonardo!”

 

When Mikey tried to strike him across the head, Yoshi ducked and swept the teen’s legs out from under him, before kicking him away.

 

“Mind your foot-work Michelangelo.”

 

And then Raphael charged at him. Yoshi promptly back-flipped over his head, before using his staff to disarm the red-headed teen, before pinning him up against a nearby column.

 

“You are distracted Raphael…” he gently scolded, “… you must learn to focus your attacks.”

 

Raphael just brushed him off, “I’d like to focus my attacks on that Stockman guy! Why can’t we just go top-side and show him that you don’t mess with this family!”

 

“Because I said no!”

 

“Ugh!”

 

Yoshi turned away from his sons, heading to his own room. “We will resume your training in the morning.”

 

As the doors closed behind him, he heard his second youngest cackle, before doing a terrible impression of him.

 

“We will resume your training in the morning.”

 

“I heard that Michelangelo!”

 

“Busted!”

 

At Donatello’s victorious tease, Yoshi couldn’t help but smile.

 

Little did he know, shit was about to hit the fan.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

 

“Busted!”

 

Donnie giggled as Mikey pushed him away… but Raph wasn’t laughing.

 

“Ugh, I’d like to bust a few heads!”

 

“Chill twin of mine…” Mikey placed an arm around Raph’s shoulders, before heading over to the TV and switching them on, “… we don’t need anything up there. We’ve got all-night movie marathons, top ten video countdowns, BMX highlights…. Some weird Korean soap opera- “

 

“- or…” Donnie interrupted, goggles on as he went back over to his table, “… you can help me with these mousers? If I can get one working, we can trace it back to the source and find out what Stockman’s really using them for.”

 

“Nah…” Raph yawned, “… Not that it doesn’t sound interesting, but I’m pretty beat. I think I’m gonna catch some z’s.”

 

Before anyone could respond, he rushed to his room… and Leo frowned in suspicion.

 

“Since when does Raph turn in so early?” he asked, knowing that Raph, Donnie and Mikey were all as bad as each other when it came to going to sleep at a normal time.

 

Something was up.

 

……………………………………………………………………………………..

 

Hours later, with Mikey curled up on the sofa, a small ginger cat purring loudly in the light of the TV, a figure leapt down to the bottom floor, running out of the door…. Only to run into Leo.

 

“Midnight stroll Raph?” Leo asked, arms crossed and a disappointed look on his face.

 

“Get out of my way Leo!”

 

“Dad said we need to stay put!”

 

Grabbing some ammunition, Raph sneered at his older brother, eyes glowing slightly. “I’ll go through you if I have to!”

 

Thunder started to rumble above Leo’s head, “I’d like to see you try Hothead!”

 

“You won’t be able to do shit Yoshi junior!”

 

The glow and the thunder disappeared as the pair lunged at each other, grappling and rolling around on the floor, cursing at each other as they tried every dirty trick in the book…. And then the mouser ran past.

 

“I got one working! I got one working!” Donnie cried out as he ran past, a ginger cat following on behind, “Come on! He’s faster than he looks!”

 

As he and the cat headed further down the corridor, Raph smirked up at Leo. “So…. You just gonna let our baby brother go off like that?”

 

Leo was already pushing himself to his feet and sprinting after them, “Dad is totally going to kill us for this! Are you coming or what?!”

 

“… If you insist.”

 

They raced after their brothers and the mouser, hoping that I would lead them to Stockman… unaware that another red-head was doing research of her own.

 

They followed the mouser to the water conduit, where many pipes ended, and water pooled down below.

 

“Watch your step!” Leo ordered his brothers, as they raced along a pipe, “We don’t want to end up as mutant soup.”

 

Mikey, who had shifted into a gecko, seemed amused by this.

 

When they reached the end of the pipe, they watched the mouser started to walk up the walls.

 

“Resourceful little… critter.” Donnie growled, watching as Mikey shifted into an eagle, flying after the mouser in order to keep an eye on it, “What should we do?”

 

“It’s like Dad says….” Leo pulled several palm spikes, designed for wall climbing, out of his belt, “… a true ninja is always prepared.”

 

Raph smirked at this, “And here I thought that was the boy scouts.”

 

As they started to climb up the wall, Mikey (who was taking a break and resting on a higher pipe) smirked at them, “You guys should really leave the wall climbing to the dude in the red and blue tights.”

 

“…. You read way too many comic books.”

 

“No such thing!” Leaping into the air, Mikey shifted back into an eagle and continued to keep an eye on the mouser, which had climbed into a giant pipe that led into another corridor of the sewers.

 

As they raced after it, a thought suddenly occurred to Mikey. “Hey Donnie!” he called out to his brother, “What’s to stop old turbo-jaws from chewing up another 6.2 on the Richter scale?”

 

“I shut down its’ jaw servos! It couldn’t even chew through a stick of gum!”

 

The Mouser suddenly stopped, turning to its’ right and proceeding to chomp through the pipes.

 

“You were saying?” Raph growled.

 

“But…” Donnie was clearly confused, “… I’m sure I shut them off! I checked!”

 

An arm wrapped around his shoulders as Mikey pulled him closer, “Awww, baby brother’s lost his techno-mojo…. Sad really.”

 

Donnie rolled his eyes, “It must have some sort of security over-ride routine…. Come on.” As he went to follow the mouser, he suddenly stopped in his tracks, staring up at the ceiling. “Uh-oh.”

 

“Donnie?” Leo frowned in concern, “What’s wrong?”

 

“Well, if I’m not mistaken, that’s a serious water main hanging right over our heads!”

 

“So?”

 

“So, our little mouser friend just ate through the pipe’s support!”

 

The pipe cracked, and more water started to pour out.

 

“Incoming!” Leo yelled, just as the pipe burst and a tidal wave of water came splashing out into the corridor, sweeping the brothers off their feet and towards the water conduit… and the long drop.

 

Whilst Mikey was able to shift into another flying creature, catching Raph in his claws, Leo and Donnie had to think quickly. Pulling out his staff, Donnie used it to stop his fall, one hand on either end and the staff caught on the metal pipe. Leo then grabbed Donnie’s ankles, wincing as Donnie yelped in pain.

 

“Ouch!” Raph growled, “Watch the talons Mikey! Watch the talons!”

 

“Leo!” Donnie was making some protests of his own, “Why are you swinging?!”

 

“I have an idea! At three, let go!”

 

“WHAT?!”

 

“THREE!”

 

With one swing, Leo let go, flying through a waterfall and out of sight. At the same time, Donnie let go of one end of his staff, following his brother through the water.

 

And then Mikey threw Raph through as well.

 

On the other side of the wall, three of the brothers clung to the wall, soaking wet…. And supremely pissed of in Raph’s case.

 

“Are you all okay?” Leo asked in concern, noticing how his youngest brother shivered slightly with the cold.

 

“Peachy…” Raph growled, trying to grab Mikey as he flew past, “… I’m fancying stuffed eagle for tea though.”

 

Mikey squawked in protest, watching as his brothers climbed back up to the pipe and headed back to the hole.

 

“I swear…” Raph grumbled, “… when I get my hands on that metal menace, I’m gonna grind him into little bot burgers!”

 

“Easy Raphie!” Donnie chuckled, wrapping his arms around himself in order to combat the cold, “We’ve got to keep him in once peace remember?”

 

“And what makes you think we’ll even find the little blender butt anyway?” Mikey asked, shifting mid-air and landing on the ground.

 

Leo chuckled at this, gesturing at the giant hole in the wall and pipes. “I think he left us a few clues.”

 

Slowly, they made their way through the home-made tunnel, emerging near some train tracks, where Donnie instantly spotting their target. “There!”

 

Before they could charge at it, a train shot by… and then the robot was gone.

 

“Woah…” Mikey whistled, “… Robo-Houndini!”

 

“Wrong! Robo-Hitchhiker!” Leo cried out, point at the sight of the robot hanging on to the back of the train.

 

“Dammit! We’ll never catch him now.”

 

Raph shook his head in disagreement, and smirked. “Two can play at that game…” he sniggered as another train shot past, leaping onto it and using his Sai to stay put.

 

“Maniac!” Leo groaned, trying and failing to catch Donnie as he leapt towards the train as well.

 

“Wait for us Raphie!”

 

Mikey wasn’t far behind, following his other brothers as Leo groaned again. “Why me…” he whispered, leaping onto the train as well, “… why me?”

 

The train shot along the tracks, until they spotted the mouser on a nearby abandoned platform.

 

“Here’s our stop!”

 

They all leapt off, racing after the mouser as it entered another water conduit… and then another mouser appeared.

 

“Woah…” Mikey frowned and gestured at the second robot, “… who invited him?”

 

As it roared and charged at them, Raph sneered, pulling some ammo out of his pocket and charging it quickly. “I got it!”

 

As soon as the charged pebble hit the robot, it exploded, causing a largish hole to appear in the robot’s head as it fell to the ground. However, as Mikey and Raph high-fived each other, the robot slowly got back up.

 

“Oh…” Leo took a step back, making sure Donnie was behind him, “… that’s not good.”

 

“Neither is that!” Donnie exclaimed, as more mousers started making their ways towards the group, “I think this batch of chrome domes is a lot tougher than the last one!”

 

Within seconds, they were surrounded, and Raph winced. “Yeah… there’s a lot more of them too. This is great… just great.”

 

They all leapt into action immediately, determined to destroy as many as they could.

 

“These mousers are incredible!” Donnie exclaimed, “The servo mechanics, the circuitry, the articulation!”

 

“Jeez Donnie!” Raph groaned at his younger brother, “Why don’t you just marry one or something?!” 

 

Donnie was unable to reply as the mousers kept coming.

 

“Guys! The only way to stop them is to slice off their heads… ” 

 

“…. Or blow them off!” Raph finished, watching as Mikey swiftly changed into a tiger, swiping at the mousers. Donnie was able to use his staff to overload the mousers with electricity and blow them up that way.

 

Within seconds, they managed to gain the upper hand.

 

“Great job guys!” Donnie cried out as they whittled the numbers down to only a few, “Now, remember to leave at least- “

 

He stopped as the last mouser exploded into a million tiny shards, as Raph whooped in success.

 

“- One intact. Remember to leave at least one intact.”

 

Leo groaned under his breath, sheathing his katanas and shaking his head. “So much for tracing one back to the source.”

 

Before Raph could try and defend himself, the sound of a woman screaming echoed throughout the sewers, prompting them to race towards the source. Heading down a tunnel, they spotted the red-headed girl that was on the TV, pressed against the end of the tunnel, desperately pulling on the boards that were blocking the way out.

 

Surrounding her, there were several mousers, all moving closer and snapping their jaws angrily.

 

The boys all leapt defend the woman, destroying the mousers within seconds. The woman gasped in relief, “Oh thank you! Thank you, thank you! You saved my-my- “

 

As Mikey stepped a little closer, she stopped in her tracks, her eyes wide in fear at the sight of him.

 

“Hey…” he greeted eagerly, “… how ya doing?”

 

Much to his surprise, the woman gasped sharply and fainted.

 

Slowly, he turned back to his brothers and frowned, “I still have tiger stripes and teeth don’t I?”

 

“… Yeah.”

 

“Great… just great.”


	29. Attack of the Mousers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is with the 2003 personalities (as I find the 2012 ones to be really cringy), and Donatello is the youngest because when I was a child, I honestly believed that Donnie was the youngest because he was the quietest…. I know, it’s odd but that’s how I saw them.  
> I hope you enjoy it. Please read and review :)

The red-headed woman looked so peaceful, a soft smile on her face as she curled up on their sofa, unaware that the four brothers were keeping an eye on her at a distance.

 

“Oh man…” they heard her mumble quietly, prompting them to edge a little closer, “… what a weird dream. Killer robots and tiger boys… did I fall asleep watching the TV again? That was…” she stopped, spotting the boys as her eyes widened in shock, “… the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen!”

 

Turning her attention away from the boys, she glanced around the small area, quickly realising that she wasn’t at home, on her own sofa.

 

Mikey couldn’t wait any longer.

 

“Hi there!” he greeted eagerly, darting forwards, only to yelp and leap back when the woman screamed in fear, “Please don’t do that! We shape-shifters have a habit of inking ourselves when afraid… and I do mean ink.”

 

“S-s-shapeshifter?!” the woman grabbed the pillow she had been resting on and used it to cover her ears as she squeezed her eyes shut, “I’m asleep, I’m asleep, I’m asleep…”

 

Donnie frowned, pulling his blanket and little further around him (his Dad was not happy with his soaked clothes). “This… isn’t going very well.”

 

“Hey, we don’t have a lot of practice talking to other people…” Mikey protested, “… not without our disguises! It’s going to take some time!”

 

“…. I’m asleep, I’m asleep…” She cautiously peeked out at them, before wrapping the pillow around to cover her eyes, “I am so asleep! I’m asleep…”

 

She didn’t show any signs of stopping.

 

“Aw man…” Mikey yawned wearily, “… she’s making me sleepy.”

 

They waited for another few minutes, before Raph finally got fed up and moved closer to the woman, poking her in the shoulder and stopping her mid-denial. “Hey…” he growled, “…. What do you know about those mouser robot things?”

 

Slightly stunned by the question, the woman stared at Raph for a few moments, before cautiously answering. “Well… first I thought they were to deal with the pest problem in the sewers, but then I got suspicious when Doctor Stockman said- oh no… I’m talking to them!”

 

Frowning at her sudden cut-off, Leo snapped “What?!”

 

“I’m talking to them… to you! Okay April…” she started talking to herself again, “… you’re talking to your possible kidnappers… kidnappers who can shapeshift. The only logical explanation is that you’re dreaming… so everything’s okay.” A slightly dazed smile appeared on her face as she turned her attention back to the four boys, “Hello!”

 

Frustration turning into concern, Leo nervously waved back. “Ummm, hello April…. How are you?”

 

“Oh, I’m fine! Everything’s absolutely great!”

 

“Then perhaps you are ready to answer some questions young lady.”

 

April yelped at the sudden appearance of Yoshi, clutching the pillow to her chest… before fainting. It had all gotten too much for her.

 

“You still have a way with the ladies, huh Dad?”

 

Sending a playful frown at his youngest, Yoshi sighed wearily and shook his head, aware of Mikey walking away and grabbing his ipod, clearly preparing to just settle down and wait it out.

 

“What do we do now Dad?”

 

“Let’s nudge her.”

 

“I’ll snap her out of it!”

 

Before Raph could do whatever he was planning, Yoshi intervened and grabbed his son’s wrist. “Raphael no!”

 

“Ugh, someone get me when she wakes up!” they heard Mikey groan from a nearby deck-chair, before loud music seemed to fill the room. It didn’t matter that he had his headphones on… it was still deafening.

 

As the others struggled to wake the girl up, they were unaware of the chaos going on at street level, and the bank robbery that was going on.

 

…………………………………………………………………………………….

 

“Hey.”

 

Mikey didn’t move.

 

“HEY!” Slapping the palm of his hand against Mikey’s forehead, Raph smirked as his younger twin yelped in surprise.

 

“Hey! What?!”

 

“She woke up…” Raph started to explain, “… Leo made her a cup of tea, and she might be willing to admit that we’re real now.”

 

“Awesomely radical dude!”

 

“You keep talking like that, and she’s gonna pass out again.”

 

“Hey!”

 

Putting his ipod back in his pocket, Mikey cautiously made his way back over, noticing how April seemed to be allowing Donnie to sit next to her.

 

Donnie always did have that calming effect on people.

 

“So…” he gave her a reassuring smile (hoping he did manage to get rid of his fangs this time), “… you feeling okay now?”

 

Slowly, she returned the smile. “Yes… thank you. I’ve decided that this is either a really long dream that I keep not waking up from, or it’s the weirdest thing that’s ever happened to me.”

 

“Young Lady…” Her attention turned to their Dad, who looked paler than usual, “… there is something very important that we need to discuss.”

 

“…. What?”

 

“Due to terrible circumstances, we were forced into the sewers…. And now, you have put us all in great danger.”

 

April looked a little upset at this, prompting Leo to try and speak up in her defence, “Father, she was in trouble and we helped her, it wasn’t her fault.”

 

“Yeah!” Raph nodded in agreement with Leo (a rare thing nowadays), “Aren’t you always telling us to do the right thing?”

 

Yoshi sighed wearily, “As you get older, you will learn that there are many different ways to do the right thing… but there is no going back from this. I’m afraid we find ourselves at your mercy young lady.”

 

Glancing around, April caught Donnie’s eyes, watching as he quickly turned away from her and buried himself further into the tattered blanket.

 

He almost looked scared.

 

“Oh no!” She blurted out, “I would never tell anyone… I mean, who would believe me?”

 

“She’s got a point.” Donnie muttered, peeking out from his blankets and smiling shyly at her, chuckling as Mikey clambered onto the arm of the sofa and started posing.

 

“Yeah, we’re unbelievable!”

 

“Jesus Mikey!” Raph groaned, “Where’s your off switch?!”

 

April, whilst giggling at the twin’s antics, kept her eyes on Yoshi. “Seriously!” She begged him, “I promise I won’t say anything!”

 

Slowly, Yoshi pushed himself to his feet and made his way over to her, staring intently into her eyes for a few seconds… before a soft smile appeared on his face. “I believe you.”

 

Beside him, Leo tilted his head in confusion, “Is this another lesson? How to sense the truth?”

 

“No… this is called trusting your gut.”

 

“Ummm…” Cautiously, April spoke up, “… so, if I’m going to be keeping your secret… exactly what is it? Who are you guys?”

 

There was a brief moment of silence, before Yoshi moved to sit on the floor opposite April, taking a deep breath. “It is a long story… my name is Hamato Yoshi, although you may call me Splinter, and I am originally from Japan. Almost eleven years ago, me and my family were forced to move here in order to escape the violent nature of a man called Oroku Saki. When he followed us, we moved underground, learning the art of ninjutsu… and we have remained safe up until now.”

 

“And… the shapeshifting?”

 

“Only Michelangelo has that particular ability.” Yoshi gestured at his sons, “My wife had a unique bloodline, and passed on some extraordinary abilities to our children. Leonardo can control the weather, Raphael charges objects in order to make them explode, Michelangelo shape-shifts and Donatello can control electrical currents.”

 

“Shocking, right?” Mikey stated, gesturing at Donnie, before dissolving into laughter at his own pun as the others groaned.

 

“First rule….” Raph sighed, “… ignore Mikey. Your life will be a lot easier.”

 

Ignoring how his second youngest protested, Yoshi continued. “It is as I said… we have remained here in secrecy since Saki first made his way to New York, and that is unlikely to change until I know for sure he is gone for good.”

 

“Ummm guys….” Mikey gestured at the TV, “… I think you need to check this out.”

 

“Police are completely baffled by this daring bank robbery…” the reporter stated, “… boldly executed in broad daylight. If anyone has any information, the police urge you to call the Crime-stoppers hot-line.”

 

As the camera focused in on some of the details within the vault, including the hole the intruders used and the prints, Mikey turned to the rest of his family. “So… anyone wanna take a wild guess at who’s behind that?”

 

“This must be what I heard Doctor Stockman talking about!” April exclaimed, “He’s got the mousers robbing banks!”

 

“What do you know about this Stockman guy?” Raph asked.

 

“He’s a genius… but he’s also nuts. I was on a work-placement position in his labs, but when I got suspicious, he turned the mousers on me. Luckily, I ran into you guys.”

 

Leo sighed wearily at this news, turning to his Father. “So, he’s the one who destroyed our old home.”

 

“Must have been one of his mouser test runs.”

 

Mikey frowned, “But it was our home!” he protested, with Donnie nodding in agreement.

 

“And now he’s graduated to banks!”

 

“So, what are we waiting for?” Raph pushed himself to his feet, his sai spinning around in his hands, “I say we shut down mouser central… permanently!”

 

“Gotta love those action movie lines…” Mikey chuckled, teasing his twin, “… do you write those yourself?”

 

April however, seemed to agree with Raph’s plan. “It won’t be easy…” she mused, “… Stocktronics is rigged with the latest, up-to-the-minute security tech.”

 

“Ha!” Mikey darted over to the sofa, pulling Donnie to his feet and beaming at him, “Bring it on! All me to introduce our very own secret weapon! The next Einstein himself, Doooonaaateeellooooo! Take a bow Donnie!”

 

“Mikey…” Donnie flushed, elbowing his brother in the side and refusing to look April in the eyes, “… cut it out.”

 

As Raph started to plead with Yoshi about being allowed out to deal with Stockman, April stared at Donnie. “But… he’s like twelve?”

 

“Thirteen.” Donnie pouted, as Mikey pulled him closer.

 

“Trust us! If anyone can hack into Stocktronics, it’s Donnie. The kid’s a genius!”

 

“Not a kid anymore Mikey! I can be classed as a teenager now!”

 

Before the teasing could escalate, Yoshi cleared his throat, a clear indicator that he was asking for silence. “You may deal with this issue with the help of April, however, I want you to do it from the shadows as much as you can.” He then turned to April, “I assure you, Donatello can get through the security protocols. I have every faith in him.”

 

She still didn’t sure, but April nodded, watching as Yoshi tossed a jumper at Donnie, before the younger one could follow his brothers.

 

She didn’t miss the concerned look on the older man’s face as they left.

 

…………………………………………………………………………………..

 

“Alarms in the sewers…” Mikey hissed, watching as Donnie pulled out some blue wires and started to work on them, “… is this guy paranoid or what!?!”

 

“Shut up Mikey.” Raph growled.

 

“I’m just saying!”

 

“Guys please…” Donnie sighed, sending the twins a quick glare, “… could April and I have some peace and quiet? This is delicate work.”

 

“Oooooo! April and I! This is delicate work! Gimme a- AH! Leo, he just shocked me!”

 

“Mikey. Shut up.”

 

Within seconds, the alarm was disabled, and April gave Donnie an impressed grin.

 

“I stand corrected.” She whispered to the thirteen-year-old, smiling as he flushed slightly, heading into the vents along with his brothers.

 

In the building itself, watching as two security guards passed them by, Raph turned to April. “Is this the place?”

 

She nodded, “There’s a computer terminal in that lab. Get me in and I can create blank spots in the security cameras and the other systems. You should be able to get through to Doctor Stockman’s main laboratory.”

 

“Hmm, don’t look now, but we’ve got our own blank spot right behind us.”

 

Mikey quickly realised who he was talking about, protesting immediately. “Hey!”

 

As April and Raph made their way out of the vents, they quickly realised that the door to the lab was locked. As April watched in curiosity, Raph pulled a small piece of metal out of his pocket, charging it and shoving it into the lock, watching as it exploded with a tiny puff of smoke.

 

Once the door was unlocked, Raph and the others dived into the room, with April rushed to the computer. After a few minutes, she hissed in victory. “I’m in! I’m blanking the cameras along that corridor at ten second intervals, so you’ve got to keep moving.”

 

“… We’ll be right back.”

 

“Good luck!” However, as she turned around, she quickly realised that they were no longer there.

 

“Wow… these guys are good.”

 

……………………………………………………………………

 

The four brothers easily raced down the corridors, arriving at the main laboratory in less than a minute. As the large doors slid open, Leo winced at how quiet it was.

 

“It’s… way too quiet in here.”

 

“Yeah…” Mikey nodded in agreement, “… my spidey senses are tingling!”

 

Suddenly, the large doors slammed shut and the lights flickered on.

 

“Intruders?!” Stockman’s voice came over the speakers, “Here to steal my secrets?! You’ll leave here with nothing! Not even your lives!” There was a brief moment of silence, as Stockman stared at them from his control booth, “Who are you…. No matter, you can’t be anyone important.”

 

From the ceiling, laser weapons dropped down, aiming at the four brothers, before firing, forcing the brothers to dive in different directions.

 

Mikey immediately shifted into a small lizard, scampering up a wall as the laser continued to fire at him.

 

As a laser came close to hitting Raph in the head, as the fifteen-year-old tried to escape and charge some of his ammo, Leo darted forwards. “Raph, watch out!” Jumping in front of his brother, he used his katana to deflect the laser back at the machine, causing it to explode with a loud BANG!

 

Meanwhile, Donnie had managed to propel himself onto one of the machines, manipulating the wires and electricity inside, in order to make it turn towards the other machines, the lasers destroying them instantly.

 

“Go Donnie!” Both Leo and Raph cried out, beaming grins on their faces as they watched Donnie fiddle a little more with the wires and back-flip off the gun, landing perfectly on the ground.

 

“Five. Four. Three. Two. One!”

 

One the one, the gun exploded, sending metal flying everywhere.

 

As they raced towards the control centre where Stockman was hiding, more laser weapons fired at them. Raph was the closest, hiding directly under the device.

 

“Mikey! Sling-shot!”

 

Eagerly, Mikey raced towards his twin, foot landing in the palm of Raph’s hands as he was propelled up into the air, taking on some of the features of a gecko in order to stick to the window of the control room.

 

Needless to say, Stockman was shocked by the sight, however before he could say anything, Mikey then shifted into a gorilla, using his fist to smash through the glass, sending Stockman falling to the ground. 

 

As he climbed in, closely followed by Leo, Stockman scrambled further back.

 

“Your reign of terror is over Stockman!” Leo growled, the serious look from his face fading as Mikey placed a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Have you been practicing those?” he asked his older brother.

 

“You like it?”

 

As the other two clambered into the control room, Stockman glanced at them all in shock. “What are you?!”

 

Behind him, the door slid open and April strode into the room. “They’re with me!”

 

“April!” Stockman was starting to grow pale, “You’re alive!”

 

“And kicking! I’ve got enough evidence to put you away for years Stockman!”

 

Stockman, who was crawled back over to control panel, ignored the threats, reaching over and slamming his hand on a button seconds before Raph grabbed his collar and slammed him against the console.

 

“That’s enough!”

 

Stockman just laughed, “You’re too late! I’ve recalled the Mouser horde from their latest mission! They’ll be here any second and then you’ll be torn to pieces!”

 

“April?!”

 

At Leo’s concerned tone, April rushed over to the console. “I’ll have to shut down the entire system. Donnie, can you help?”

 

Nodding eagerly, Donnie raced over and took a seat next to her as Stockman smirked.

 

“You’re doomed! Listen!”

 

The Mousers were back.

 

As they all crowded around below the control booth, Leo and Mikey winced as the robots started to climb.

 

“Ummm April… any time now would be good!”

 

“The system isn’t responding!” She cried out, turning to Donnie in desperation, “Donnie?”

 

Donnie was silent, fingers desperately tapping over the controls. He knew he couldn’t just overload the system, not if he wanted him, April and his brothers to survive.

 

“You should never have matched wits with me!” They all heard Stockman chuckle from near the elevator, as Mikey raced towards him.

 

“He’s getting away!”

 

“Let him go Mikey…” Raph sighed, “… We’ve got bigger problems right now.”

 

The Mousers had gotten into the control booth and were slowly starting to surround them.

 

“Well, at least we’ll go out fighting.” Raph sighed, growling as Mikey slapped him on the arm.

 

“Speak for yourself! I don’t want to go out at all!”

 

Behind them, April was starting to panic. “It’s not working Donnie!”

 

“Keep trying!”

 

The panic in his little brother’s voice didn’t help Raph’s nerves. “This is it… it’s been fun guys!”

 

“Even me Raph?”

 

“Especially you Mikey.”

 

And then the Mousers all stopped, the yellow lights on the top of their heads blinking madly. Cautiously, Leo poked one of them with his katana, and when they didn’t move he beamed at the twins, prompting them to whoop and cheer.

 

“Wow Donnie, that was incredible!” April exclaimed, the joy quickly turning to concern at the look on Donnie’s face, “Donnie… how did you do that?”

 

“Ummmm…. I couldn’t stop them.”

 

The others, who had been in the middle of calling the Mousers some… unpleasant names, stopped in their tracks and turned to stare at Donnie.

 

The yellow lights on the Mousers had turned red.

 

“They look pretty shut down to me.” Mikey tried to keep the situation light, falling flat as Donnie winced.

 

“I panicked! The only way I could think to stop them was to… overload the system.”

 

“So, in other words… LET’S GET OUT OF HERE!”

 

With Leo taking April in his arms, the brothers leapt out of the control booth and raced towards the exit, making it into the sewers just as the Mousers exploded, and the laboratory went up in flames.

 

……………………………………………………………………..

 

“And the authorities are completely perplexed by the destruction of the Stocktronics building, and the sudden disappearance of Doctor Baxter Stockman.”

 

Turning his attention away from the TV, Yoshi glanced at April. “What will you do now Miss O’Neil? You are most definitely out of a work placement position.”

 

April frowned, “Ummm… I’m not exactly sure.”

 

“We’ll help you get back on your feet!” Donnie announced, quietly sipping on his tea as he beamed up at her

 

“You guys have all been… well great! I-I don’t think I can thank you enough!”

 

“To the new team?” Leo prompted, raising his own cup into the air, beaming as the others joined in on the toast.

 

“To the new team!”

 

……………………………………………………

 

“So, as any fool can see, this is just a minor setback…” Stockman tried to explain to the stern-looking Japanese man, “… with your continued funding, the project can start back up. I’ll be back at work… oh, Monday morning?”

 

“You must pay the price for failure Doctor Stockman.”

 

Stockman paled at the words, taking a step back… straight into a wall of muscle. Hun grabbed him and started to drag him away.

 

“No! Where are you taking me! You’ll regret this! NO!”

 

As the doors slammed shut behind the pair, Saki turned to the man who had just emerged from the shadows.

 

“We have the image you requested Master…” the man bowed low, as a screen dropped down from the ceiling and the last surviving head of the mouser from the explosion.

 

“So… this is the last image the Mousers saw?”

 

On the screen, were four heat-camera images of young men, ninja weapons in their hands.

 

“Finally.” Saki growled, diving forwards and slicing the screen in half, “Revenge will be mine!”


End file.
